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Gallery|Coronavirus pandemic

Photos: Protests in Ottawa swell as US border blockades continue

US-Canada border bridge access remains blocked as other demonstrations ramped up in cities across Canada.

Protesters massed on Wellington street in front of the Canadian Parliament Buildings
Protesters massed on Wellington street in front of the Canadian Parliament Buildings for the third weekend in a row. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
Published On 13 Feb 2022

Protesters opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other restrictions have withdrawn their vehicles from a key US-Canada border bridge, though access remained blocked, while other demonstrations continued in cities across Canada.

The tense standoff at the Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit in the United States with Windsor, Ontario, eased somewhat early on Saturday when Canadian police persuaded demonstrators to move the trucks they had used to barricade the entrance to the busy international crossing.

But protesters reconvened nearby to choke off access from the Canadian side late on Saturday, snarling traffic and commerce for a sixth day – about 180 remained late Saturday in the sub-freezing cold.

In the capital, Ottawa, police said they were awaiting more officers before ending what they described as an illegal occupation.

The ranks of protesters swelled to what police estimated was 4,000 demonstrators. The city has seen that on past weekends, and loud music played as people milled about downtown where anti-vaccine demonstrators have been encamped since late January.

The protests have reverberated outside the country, with similarly inspired convoys in France, New Zealand and the Netherlands. In the US, the Department of Homeland Security warned that truck convoys may be in the works there.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency last week for the capital, where hundreds of trucks remained in front of the Parliament Buildings and demonstrators have set up portable toilets outside the prime minister’s office where Justin Trudeau’s motorcade usually parks.

Protesters massed on Wellington street in front of the Canadian Parliament Buildings
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency last week for the capital, where hundreds of trucks remained in front of the Parliament Buildings. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
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A protester enters one of a series of Port—oPotties installed on Metcalfe street in full view of the Candian Parliament Buildings.
Demonstrators have set up portable toilets outside the prime minister’s office where Trudeau’s motorcade usually parks. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
A counter -protest was held starting in Lansdowne Park
A counterprotest was held starting in Lansdowne Park. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
A counter -protest was held starting in Lansdowne Park
Less than 2,000 people joined the counterprotests. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
The children of demonstrators play a game of hockey on Rideau Street.
While the protesters are decrying vaccine mandates for truckers and other COVID-19 restrictions, many of Canada's public health measures, such as mask rules and vaccine passports for getting into restaurants and theaters, are already falling away as the Omicron surge levels off. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
Police officers walk west along Wellington street.
Multiple municipal police forces as well as the Ontario Provincial Police and the RCMP have been deployed in Ottawa. Police issued a statement calling the protest an unlawful occupation and saying they were waiting for police “reinforcements” before implementing a plan. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]
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Protesters and trucks were massed on Wellington street in front of the Canadian Parliament Buildings
Canadian police say the protests have been partly funded by US supporters and Ontario froze funds donated via one US platform, GiveSendGo. Toronto-Dominion Bank has frozen two personal bank accounts into which 1.4 million Canadian dollars ($1.1m) had been deposited in support of the protesters. [Roger Lemoyne/Al Jazeera]