Venezuela and Ecuador deploy troops to Colombia border

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez ordered tanks and thousands of troops to the border with Colombia, accusing it of pushing South America to the brink of war by killing a top rebel leader on Ecuadorean soil.

Denouncing Colombia’s slaying of the rebel commander in a cross-border raid into Ecuador, Mr Chavez said Venezuela will respond militarily if Colombia violates its border. He ordered Venezuela’s embassy in Bogota closed.