Truckers driving across Canada protesting vaccine mandate
Maine Expedited Freight group driver Brian Ilsley joins 'Fox & Friends' to discuss the joint effort between US and Canadian truck drivers to protest COVID vaccine mandates
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been moved to a secret location as tens of thousands of protesters demonstrating against vaccine mandates and continuing COVID-19 restrictions showed up in the downtown area of the nation’s capital of Ottawa this weekend.
Trudeau and his family have been moved from their Ottawa home to an undisclosed location still within the nation’s capital amid security concerns, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
"The Prime Minister is continuing to isolate in the National Capital Region and work remotely," the Office of the Prime Minister of Canada told Fox News Digital via email on Sunday. "We’ve consulted Ottawa Public Health on appropriate protocols. As always, we do not comment on security matters."
NOVA SCOTIA OUTLAWS SUPPORT ON HIGHWAY FOR ‘FREEDOM’ TRUCKERS AFTER MASSIVE PROTEST
This comes after what’s been dubbed the "Freedom Convoy" of truckers set out last week from the western province of British Columbia in protest of a new regulation that took effect on Jan. 15 requiring truckers returning from the U.S. to show proof of vaccination. The convoy swelled to include other cars and personal vehicles, as others more generally protested Trudeau and pandemic restrictions.
As many as 10,000 people reportedly converged amid an extreme cold warning on Parliament Hill in Ottawa Saturday. CBC reported the demonstration remained peaceful. A shopping center was shut down when maskless crowds entered the building, defying mandates requiring face covering indoors.
The prime minister’s itinerary for Sunday says he remains in the National Capital Region. The nature of his business is listed as personal, and no other details are included in the public schedule.
"The Canadian truckers – you’ve been reading about it – who are resisting, bravely, these lawless mandates are doing more to defend American freedom than our own leaders by far," former U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday evening, speaking at a Save America rally in Conroe, Texas. "And we want those great Canadian truckers to know that we are with them all the way."
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, podcaster Joe Rogan and comedian Russell Brand have also voiced support.
Amid news the convoy was nearing Ottawa, Trudeau announced Thursday that he learned he had been exposed to COVID-19 and has since tested negative but would still follow Ottawa Public Health rules by working from home and isolating for the next five days. He urged people to get vaccinated.
"The small, fringe minority of people who are on their way to Ottawa or who are holding unacceptable views that they are expressing do not represent the views of Canadians following the science," he said Wednesday. "Stepping up to protect each other is the best way to continue to ensure our freedoms."
Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau listens to question during a news conference in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, October 6, 2021. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle
Meanwhile, Canadian media have begun suggesting Russia, in some way, is behind the protest as a form of payback for Canada’s support of Ukraine in the mounting military standoff at their border.
"Given Canada’s support of Ukraine in this current crisis with Russia, I don’t know if it is far-fetched to ask, but there is concern that Russian actors could be continuing to fuel things as this protest grows. But perhaps, even instigating it from the outset," a CBC journalist recently stated during an on-air broadcast.
Maxime Bernier, leader of the People’s Party of Canada, and the group Canada Proud, have shared clips of the remarks, accusing the CBC of trying to smear the protesters by spreading conspiracy theories.
Photos have been circulating showing a Confederate and a Nazi flag in the crowd, as well as at least one person carrying a Trump 2024 flag. Overwhelmingly, crowd members were seen carrying Canadian flags.
Critics have also made comparisons to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Gen. Wayne Eyre, Chief of the Defence Staff, tweeted Saturday that he was "sickened to see protesters dance on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and desecrate the National War Memorial."
"Generations of Canadians have fought and died for our rights, including free speech, but not this," he continued. "Those involved should hang their heads in shame."
Fox News' "Antisemitism Exposed" newsletter brings you stories on the rising anti-Jewish prejudice across the U.S. and the world.