OTTAWA (Washington Insider Magazine) – On Friday, officials began arresting protestors in an attempt to end a three-week blockade of Canada’s capital by truckers protesting the nation’s Covid-19 regulations.
According to authorities, several demonstrators surrendered and then were taken to jail. Some people were spotted in handcuffs being escorted away. The Ottawa Police Department said that 100 protesters had been arrested by the evening on a number of charges, including mischief.
According to police, at least 21 cars, some if not all of which were reportedly used to anchor demonstrators downtown, had been removed. Officials claimed they constructed a “secured area” where the public gathering is temporarily restricted as they proceeded to force demonstrators away from downtown.
Interim Ottawa Police Chief Steve Bell stated during a press conference on Friday that protestors and cops got into a physical altercation on Friday, and 1 officer was treated for mild injuries. Later, police cavalry on horses was employed to force the gathering back for a short time.
Late afternoon, police stated demonstrators attacked cops and attempted to steal their firearms. Some started dismantling machinery at a platform where they had been playing music for weeks, claiming they didn’t want it damaged.
According to NBC NEWS, several demonstrators stayed firm in the face of one of the largest police enforcement activities in Canadian history, with officers gathered from around the nation.
However, in the afternoon, a steady flow of vehicles began departing Parliament Hill.
After three weeks of protests and roadblocks that closed down border crossings into the United States, inflicted economic harm to both nations, and created a political dilemma for Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the capital was the movement’s final foothold.
Authorities have been hesitant to take action against most of the protestors around the country in recent weeks, partly due to fear of violence. Right-wing radicals and veterans, some armed, have attended the protests.
With government and police under fire for allegedly allowing the demonstrations to grow in size and spread, Trudeau used Canada’s Emergencies Act on Monday to label the blockades unlawful, tow trucks away, imprison drivers, cancel their licenses, and freeze their financial transactions.
On Thursday, Ottawa police made it known that they were planning on stopping the demonstration and removing more than 300 vehicles, with the interim police chief of Ottawa stating, “Action is imminent.”
Demonstrators in motor homes, tractors and trucks gathered around the nation to oppose Canada’s vaccine mandate for truckers coming into the country, but the protests quickly turned into a strong attack on Covid-19 safeguards and Trudeau’s administration.
