Venezuela takes Colombia TV channel off air: Executive

Bogota: Venezuelan authorities took a major Colombian television channel off air on their territory, the broadcaster said Thursday, amid diplomatic tensions between the two countries over Venezuela`s deadly political crisis.

Caracol Television became the latest of several foreign broadcasters ordered off air by President Nicolas Maduro, who accuses hostile media of joining in a conspiracy against him.

"We deeply regret this decision by the government of Venezuela to take Caracol Television off the air. They have taken us off the two cable operators," Caracol`s head of news, Juan Roberto Vargas, said on BLU radio in Colombia.

Maduro faces international pressure including from Colombia and the United States over his handling of an economic and political crisis as he resists opposition calls for elections.

Last weekend tension between Venezuela and its neighbor Colombia mounted after Santos offered protection to a fugitive prosecutor critical of Maduro.

Vargas insisted that Caracol was always "objective and truthful" in its coverage.