Police make arrests and close city streets ahead of planned Ottawa protests

Ottawa braced for a weekend-long protest ostensibly against COVID-19 vaccination mandates on Saturday as police shut down city streets in a bid to prevent the kind of long-running disruptions that gripped downtown. of the city for weeks in February.

The protest activities planned for Saturday come after officers and protesters clashed Friday night, resulting in seven arrests and two dozen vehicles towed.

Police and city officials informed residents Saturday morning that related events were expected throughout the day while a large portion of downtown was closed to participating vehicles. A convoy of hundreds of motorcycles is also expected to make its way through the city center as part of the demonstrations.

“There are several events planned for this weekend in Ottawa. The police will monitor them to ensure the peace is maintained,” read a Saturday morning tweet from the Ottawa Police Service.

At 9:40 a.m., a crowd of about 100 protesters carrying Canadian flags and heart-shaped helium balloons began to gather at the National War Memorial in anticipation of an event said to honor war veterans who were removed from the site by police during February “Freedom Convoy” Demonstrations. A few dozen counter-protesters were across the street yelling at them to go home.

Police had lined the street between the two groups to separate them.

The “Rolling Thunder” protesters began arriving in the city on Friday afternoon, as part of a weekend event billed by some participants as a motorcycle rally and organized by Freedom Fighters Canada, a group dedicated to denouncing the COVID-19. Many of the protesters were also part of the February “Freedom Convoy” rally that gripped the capital for weeks in protest of vaccination mandates, COVID-19 restrictions and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The event at the War Memorial is expected to be followed by an afternoon gathering on Parliament Hill, according to the group’s social media posts.

The “Rolling Thunder” rally began relatively calmly on Parliament Hill Friday afternoon, but as night fell, a line of large trucks, RVs and other trucks made their way downtown. Protesters gathered around the trucks and police in tactical gear formed a line and faced them.

Seven people were arrested on various charges, including assaulting police, the Ottawa Police Service said. At least one truck also had its windows broken. The force said Saturday that it had towed 24 vehicles since the night before.

As of 7 am Saturday, city officials issued 417 tickets and towed 30 vehicles in connection with the demonstration.

OC Transpo, the city’s public transportation agency, tweeted Saturday that it was increasing its presence on the ground to support customers and “ensure the safety of our frontline staff.” On Friday night, the agency tweeted that the Rideau Center, a three-level shopping mall in the heart of downtown, was closed due to the demonstration.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 30, 2022.

— With archives of Sarah Smellie at St. John’s