Venezuela vowed to expel Colombia's ambassador and Ecuador completely broke diplomatic ties on Monday, two days after Colombian commandos killed a guerrilla leader and several rebels in a cross-border incursion into Ecuador. Colombia's police chief, meanwhile, said documents found on a laptop computer seized in the raid offered evidence that the governments of Venezuela and Ecuador provided political and financial support to Colombia's largest guerrilla group.
The Colombian commando raid on Saturday that killed rebel leader Raul Reyes infuriated Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa and his ally, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Chavez has called Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe a "mob boss" and a "liar." Both countries have mobilized troops toward their borders with Colombia.
"The government of Ecuador has decided to break off diplomatic relations with the government of Colombia starting today," a statement from Ecuador's foreign ministry said.