Ottawa police say there's a 'significant' U.S. presence at Canadian anti-mandate protest
Anti–vaccine mandate protesters in Ottawa received some help from their neighbors to the south, the Ottawa police chief said Wednesday, with a "significant element" from the U.S. involved with funding and planning the event.
Thousands of people descended on Ottawa Friday to demonstrate against Canada's efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19, including vaccine mandates and mask wearing. Many came in their big rigs, specifically protesting the rule that truck drivers who cross the border must be fully vaccinated. The Canadian Trucking Alliance says a vast majority of its members are fully vaccinated and insists several people at the protest over the weekend "do not have a connection to the trucking industry."
"They have converged in our city, and there are plans for more to come," Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly said on Wednesday. All of the participants, he added, are "putting our city and our residents, our partners, and our officers at great risk."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Officials said there is a core group of protesters remaining in Ottawa, The Washington Post reports, and many are honking their horns at all hours and blocking businesses. Over the weekend, the National War Memorial was vandalized, and a homeless shelter and soup kitchen said its staff was harassed by protesters and one of its residents assaulted. There are several criminal investigations now underway into "threatening" and "illegal" behavior by protesters, police said, and three people have been charged.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said Canadians are "shocked and frankly disgusted by the behavior displayed by some people protesting in our nation's capital." Sloly said Wednesday that police are "trying to be responsible, lawful, ethical, and measured. The longer this goes on, the more I am convinced there may not be a police solution in this demonstration."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
5 hilariously spirited cartoons about the spirit of Christmas
Cartoons Artists take on excuses, pardons, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Inside the house of Assad
The Explainer Bashar al-Assad and his father, Hafez, ruled Syria for more than half a century but how did one family achieve and maintain power?
By The Week UK Published
-
Sudoku medium: December 22, 2024
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
Top Russian general killed in Moscow blast
Speed Read A remote-triggered bomb killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK Published
-
NATO chief urges Europe to arm against Russia
Speed Read Mark Rutte said Putin wants to 'wipe Ukraine off the map' and might come for other parts of Europe next
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New Syria government takes charge, urging 'stability'
Speed Read The rebel forces that ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad announced an interim government
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Romania's election rerun
The Explainer Shock result of presidential election has been annulled following allegations of Russian interference
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Russia's shadow war in Europe
Talking Point Steering clear of open conflict, Moscow is slowly ratcheting up the pressure on Nato rivals to see what it can get away with.
By The Week UK Published
-
South Korea roiled by short-lived martial law
Speed Read President Yoon Suk Yeol's imposition of martial law was a 'clear violation of the constitution,' said the opposition parties who have moved to impeach him
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Syrian rebels seize Aleppo in surprise offensive
Speed Read The rebels made gains against President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and reignited Syria's 13-year-old civil war
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published