Image copyright Reuters Image caption Communications regulator Conatel took two channels off the air

Venezuela's communications regulator Conatel has taken two Colombian television channels off the air.

Caracol and RCN were pulled overnight in a move that the channels called "censorship".

Earlier this year, CNN's Spanish language channel was also stopped from broadcasting in Venezuela.

No reason was given for the move, but President Nicolás Maduro has accused Colombia and its leader of plotting against his government.

'Crusade of censorship'

Commenting on the move, RCN said that "the regime of Nicolás Maduro continues its crusade of censorship against Colombian media".

The director of Caracol said that while he had not been given an explanation by Conatel, he suspected that the move was related to the coverage the channel had given to the arrival of Luisa Ortega in Colombia.

Ms Ortega, who until recently was Venezuela's chief prosecutor, has become one of the most outspoken critics of the Maduro government.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Luisa Ortega has accused the president and key government figures of corruption

Once a firm government ally, she denounced attempts to strip the Venezuelan legislature of its powers.

She also said that the creation of the constitutional assembly was unconstitutional, only to be removed from her post by that very assembly in one of its first actions.

After her husband was accused of extortion, the couple fled to Colombia on 18 April, where they were offered asylum by President Juan Manuel Santos.

Ms Ortega and her husband have since travelled to Brazil, where she spoke at a crime-fighting conference in Brasilia.

There, she accused President Maduro and senior officials in his government of corruption, which they have denied. President Maduro said he would ask Interpol to arrest to couple.

The twists and turns of the story were closely followed by Caracol TV and RCN.

'Sowing hate'

President Maduro has been highly critical of international media organisations.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption President Maduro has been critical of international media organisations

In a press conference on Tuesday, he said that the BBC "has become the biggest propaganda apparatus for the military intervention" in Venezuela.

He also said that it was "hard to neutralise the lying power of CNN, Fox News and the BBC".

"They are sowing hate every day," he said.

After it was taken off the airwaves, Caracol TV said that it regretted the decision taken by the Venezuelan government.

"Noticias Caracol has always carried out its journalistic work in an objective and truthful manner and following principles that we consider fundamental: to offer journalism with context and listening to all points of view," the channel's statement said.</s>A woman walks out from the building of the National Commission of Telecommunications, in Caracas, Venezuela February 16, 2017. — Reuters pic CARACAS, Aug 25 — Venezuela’s government yesterday ordered cable television providers to cut the signal of two Colombian networks, a move that critics, including Colombia’s leader, called a crackdown on free speech by President Nicolas Maduro.

The country’s telecommunications regulator called for RCN and Caracol Television to be taken off the air for broadcasting a message it said incited Maduro’s murder, the office of Venezuela’s presidency said in a statement.

“The measure is within the bounds of the law, given that those stations over several months attacked Venezuela and (its) institutionality and now are openly calling for a magnicide,” the statement said, citing Andres Mendez, former head of telecom regulator Conatel.

The statement said the message in question was a comment by former Mexican President Vicente Fox, who said: “Maduro, resign or you will die.”

The decision was lambasted by Venezuelan opposition political leaders and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who called it another sign that Venezuela was descending into dictatorship.

Caracol, which earlier announced its removal from Venezuelan cable networks, blasted Maduro for engaging in censorship.

RCN said on its evening news broadcast that it categorically rejected the action and that its signal had been cut off at 5:30pm.

Maduro often criticizes neighboring Colombia for being part of a right-wing conspiracy to bring down socialism in oil-rich Venezuela. He says Venezuela is the victim of an “economic war” led by adversaries with the help of Washington.

Critics say Venezuela’s ruling Socialist Party, which this year led a campaign to create an all-powerful legislative superbody, is seeking to limit coverage of rampant inflation, product shortages and a crackdown on opposition politicians.

“One more channel off the airwaves! Has that made crime go down? Is inflation any lower? Is there more food? More medicine? Has any problem been solved?” opposition leader Henrique Capriles said yesterday.

Maduro alleges he is fighting well-financed coup plotters with links to the United States and hostile foreign media.

“It’s another demonstration of a regime that doesn’t like freedoms, a regime that is restricting the freedoms of citizens,” Colombia’s Santos told journalists.

Earlier this year, Conatel suspended three television channels, including CNN’s Spanish-language service, from the airwaves, accusing them of distorting the truth in their coverage.

Authorities took Colombia’s NTN24 TV network off the air in 2014 over its reporting of opposition protests that turned violent, and blocked the Argentine news site Infobae. — Reuters</s>VENEZUELA: Two Colombian TV Channels Off The Air 'by Maduro''s Order'

Two Colombian television channel signals were turned off the air in Venezuela on Thursday. According to Caracol TV and RCN Colombia representatives, both channels had their signals off ‘under orders of the President of Venezuela, Nicol?s Maduro.’

“We deeply regret this decision by the Venezuelan government to remove Caracol Televisi?n from the air. We were taken out of the two cable operators,” said Juan Carvalho Vargas, Noticias Caracol’s director, in an interview with BLU Radio.

According to a Caracol statement, Maduro had criticized in the last few days a “terrible media campaign” against his government and pointed directly to Colombian media such as Caracol and El Tiempo and El Espectador newspapers.

Caracol said that the order was carried out by the telecommunications authority in Venezuela (Conatel), which in the last few months turned off U.S.’ CNN Espa?ol, Colombia’s El Tiempo and the Argentina’s Todo Noticias.

The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com</s>CARACAS/BOGOTA, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Venezuela's government said on Thursday it ordered cable television providers to cut the signal of two Colombian networks, and critics called the order a crackdown on free speech by President Nicolas Maduro.

The country's telecommunications regulator called for RCN and Caracol Television to be taken off the air for broadcasting a message it said incited Maduro's murder, the office of Venezuela's presidency said in a statement.

"The measure is within the bounds of the law, given that those stations over several months attacked Venezuela and (its) institutionality and now are openly calling for a magnicide," the statement said, citing Andres Mendez, former head of telecom regulator Conatel.

The statement said the message in question was a comment by former Mexican President Vicente Fox, who said, "Maduro, resign or you will die."

The decision was lambasted by Venezuelan opposition political leaders and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who called it another sign that Venezuela is descending into dictatorship.

Caracol, which earlier announced its removal from Venezuelan cable networks, blasted Maduro for engaging in censorship.

Reuters was unable to immediately obtain comment from RCN.

Maduro often blasts neighboring Colombia for being part of a right-wing conspiracy to bring down socialism in oil-rich Venezuela. He says Venezuela is victim of an "economic war" led by adversaries with the help of Washington.

Critics say Venezuela's ruling Socialist Party, which this year led a campaign to create an all-powerful legislative superbody, is seeking to limit coverage of rampant inflation, product shortages and a crackdown on opposition politicians.

"One more channel off the airwaves! Has that made crime go down? Is inflation any lower? Is there more food? More medicine? Has any problem been solved?" opposition leader Henrique Capriles said on Thursday.

Maduro, a 54-year-old former bus driver and foreign minister, alleges he is fighting well-financed coup plotters with links to the United States and hostile foreign media.

"It's another demonstration of a regime that doesn't like freedoms, a regime that is restricting the freedoms of citizens," Colombia's Santos told journalists.

Earlier this year, Venezuelan telecoms regulator Conatel suspended three television channels, including CNN's Spanish-language service, from the airwaves, accusing them of distorting the truth in their coverage.

Authorities took Colombia's NTN24 TV network off the air in 2014 over its reporting of opposition protests that turned violent, and blocked the Argentine news site Infobae. (Reporting by Corina Pons, Andreina Aponte and Alexandra Ulmer in Caracas and Julia Symmes Cobb in Bogota; Writing by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Leslie Adler)</s>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.</s>President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government has pulled a Colombian television channel from Venezuela's airwaves, Caracol Television said on Thursday, slamming the move as a crackdown on media.

CARACAS: President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government has pulled a Colombian television channel from Venezuela's airwaves, Caracol Television said on Thursday, slamming the move as a crackdown on media.

Maduro's administration frequently blasts neighbouring Colombia for being part of what it describes as a global right-wing conspiracy to bring down socialism in oil-rich Venezuela.

The government didn't have an immediate comment on the matter.

Critics of Maduro say the unpopular leader has morphed into a dictator who tries to stifle coverage of the OPEC country's rampant inflation, product shortages, violent crime, and its crackdown on opposition politicians.

"One more channel off the airwaves! Has that made crime go down? Is inflation any lower? Is there more food? More medicine? Has any problem been solved? This is what (Maduro) takes care of, censuring the truth," opposition leader Henrique Capriles said on Thursday.

Maduro, a 54-year-old former bus driver and foreign minister, alleges he is fighting against well-financed coup plotters with links to the United States and hostile foreign media.

Earlier this year, Venezuelan telecoms regulator Conatel suspended three television channels, including CNN's Spanish-language service, from Venezuela's airwaves, accusing it of distorting the truth in coverage.

Authorities also took Colombia's NTN24 TV network off the air in 2014 over its reporting of opposition protests that turned violent, and blocked the Argentine news site Infobae.

"Caracol Television has joined a long list of channels that have gone off air in Venezuela," the channel said in a statement, blasting "censorship" from Maduro.

Venezuela's information ministry and regulator Conatel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.</s>CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Colombian TV network Caracol has been taken off the air in Venezuela a day after President Nicolas Maduro delivered a scathing rebuke of Colombian media.

Caracol News director Juan Roberto Vargas tells a Colombian radio outlet that the channel's coverage of ousted chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz appears to have been a "breaking point" that led to its removal.

Colombian news channel RCN was also blocked Thursday from a Venezuelan local cable operator, though its signal remained active on DirecTV.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaks at a news conference in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2017. Immigration authorities in Colombia announced that Venezuela's ousted chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz is on her way to Brazil. Ortega said that Maduro removed her in order to stop a probe linking him and his inner circle to nearly $100 million in bribes from Brazilian construction company Odebrecht. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Caracol joins a growing list of news outlets that have been blocked by Maduro's government.

Earlier this year Venezuelan authorities shut down CNN en Espanol's feed after the Spanish-language channel aired a report about fraudulent passports that drew angry criticism from officials.</s>CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Colombia’s most-popular TV broadcaster has been taken off the airwaves in Venezuela after President Nicolas Maduro delivered a scathing rebuke of the neighboring country’s media, joining a growing list of news outlets that have been blocked by his government.

Caracol News director Juan Roberto Vargas told Colombian radio that the channel’s coverage of ousted chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz appears to have been a “breaking point” that led to its removal Wednesday.

Caracol’s removal threatens to further strain already tense relations between the two nations’ governments, with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos saying Thursday that Maduro is increasingly acting like a “dictator.”

“This is another demonstration that this regime doesn’t like freedoms,” Santos said.

Colombian news channel RCN was also blocked from broadcasting on a Venezuelan local cable operator, though its signal remained active Thursday on DirecTV.

Maduro regularly accuses foreign news outlets of spreading a false narrative about Venezuela’s government intended to pave the way for a supposed U.S. military intervention.

“Since the war in Iraq, we have not seen anything as sickening,” Maduro said Tuesday at a news conference with foreign journalists, singling out Caracol, Fox News and the BBC for what he considers biased coverage.

Earlier this year Venezuelan authorities shut down CNN en Espanol’s feed after the Spanish-language channel aired a report about fraudulent passports that drew angry criticism from officials. In all, about a half-dozen foreign networks have been blocked, including Colombia’s El Tiempo and NTN24 and Todo Noticias of Argentina.

Over the years Venezuela’s government has also forced a number of critical national media outlets out of business, in some cases by refusing to renew their operating licenses.

In a 2017 report on global press freedom by Reporters Without Borders, Venezuela ranked 137th out of 179 nations.

“Freedom of the press is as scarce as food” in Venezuela, Vargas told Caracol Radio, a reference to people’s struggles to find basic goods in the country.

Vargas said the move came after escalating government actions against the station. In the last year, he said, three Caracol journalists have been barred from entering Venezuela and some of its equipment was confiscated.

He said Caracol would continue broadcasting over the internet but added that many Venezuelans say they have difficulty accessing the site online, for reasons he did not specify.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said via Twitter that it was “concerned” about Venezuelan authorities’ decision to “remove another news channel from the air.”

Relations between Venezuela and Colombia have grown especially frigid during the last four months of political upheaval in Venezuela. Santos, one of Maduro’s most frequent critics, was the first to announce in late July that his nation would not recognize a vote in Venezuela for delegates to a new constitutional assembly that has nearly unlimited powers.

Ortega, the ousted chief prosecutor who broke with Maduro earlier this year, arrived in Colombia last week after fleeing Venezuela. Santos has offered her political asylum.

The constitutional assembly removed Ortega from her post shortly after it convened in early August. She has promised to deliver evidence to several foreign governments showing that Maduro and top administration officials are involved in corruption.

Associated Press writer Christine Armario in Bogota, Colombia, contributed to this report.</s>Colombian TV network Caracol has been taken off the air in Venezuela a day after President Nicolas Maduro delivered a scathing rebuke of Colombian media.

Caracol News director Juan Roberto Vargas tells a Colombian radio outlet that the channel's coverage of ousted chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz appears to have been a "breaking point" that led to its removal.

Colombian news channel RCN was also blocked Thursday from a Venezuelan local cable operator, though its signal remained active on DirecTV.

Caracol joins a growing list of news outlets that have been blocked by Maduro's government.

Earlier this year Venezuelan authorities shut down CNN en Espanol's feed after the Spanish-language channel aired a report about fraudulent passports that drew angry criticism from officials.</s>CARACAS/BOGOTA: President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government has pulled a Colombian television channel from Venezuela's airwaves, Caracol Television said on Thursday, slamming the move as a crackdown on media.

Maduro's administration frequently blasts neighboring Colombia for being part of what it describes as a global right-wing conspiracy to bring down socialism in oil-rich Venezuela. The government did not have an immediate comment on the matter.

Critics of Maduro say the unpopular leader has morphed into a dictator who tries to stifle coverage of the OPEC country's rampant inflation, product shortages, violent crime, and its crackdown on opposition politicians.

"One more channel off the airwaves! Has that made crime go down? Is inflation any lower? Is there more food? More medicine? Has any problem been solved? This is what (Maduro) takes care of, censuring the truth," opposition leader Henrique Capriles said on Thursday.

Maduro, a 54-year-old former bus driver and foreign minister, alleges he is fighting well-financed coup plotters with links to the United States and hostile foreign media.

Caracol "has always carried out its journalism in an objective and truthful way," Juan Roberto Vargas, the head of the channel's news operation, told local Colombian radio, adding he regretted Venezuela's decision.

The channel also blasted "censorship" from Maduro in a statement.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who has become increasingly critical of Maduro's administration, said he also regretted Venezuela's decision.

"It's another demonstration of a regime that doesn't like freedoms, a regime that is restricting the freedoms of citizens and that's why we've said this regime has moved away from the democratic system and is acting more and more like a dictatorship," Santos told journalists.

Earlier this year, Venezuelan telecoms regulator Conatel suspended three television channels, including CNN's Spanish-language service, from the airwaves, accusing them of distorting the truth in their coverage.

Authorities took Colombia's NTN24 TV network off the air in 2014 over its reporting of opposition protests that turned violent, and blocked the Argentine news site, Infobae.

Venezuela's information ministry and regulator Conatel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Venezuela's National Commission of Telecommunications (Conatel) takes Colombian television channels Caracol Televisión and RCN Televisión off air due to their coverage of the 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis.