MANAGUA, Nicaragua — President Ortega announced yesterday that Nicaragua is breaking relations with Colombia because of Colombia’s raid on a rebel base in Ecuador. Mr. Ortega made the announcement while sitting beside Ecuadorean President Correa, who is touring the region to rally opposition to the recent raid that killed a leftist Colombian rebel commander and 23 other people. “We are breaking off relations because of the political terrorism being carried out by the government of Alvaro Uribe, not because of the Colombian people,” Mr. Ortega said, referring to the Colombian president.

Colombia’s president says he repeatedly asked Ecuador to deal with Colombian rebels operating from its territory before he ordered the cross-border raid that has set off an international crisis. The fallout is mounting in the region’s tensest flare-up in years: In addition to Nicaragua breaking off diplomatic relations with Columbia, Venezuela has threatened to slash trade and nationalize Colombian-owned businesses, and Venezuela and Ecuador have sent troops to their borders with Colombia.