Scores of protesters who were camped out in Ottawa began to leave Saturday, not long after police aggressively pushed back on protesters, taking control of the street in front of Canada’s parliament building.
“Right now, people are trying to pack their stuff up and get out as cops are coming down the street,” said Mark Suitor, 33, from Hamilton, Ontario who had been staying in Ottawa since the protests began.
“I don’t think this is a sad moment, everybody seems very happy. I’ve been here for three weeks. I wanted to stay till the end.”
The moment raised authorities’ hopes for an end to the three-week protest against the country’s COVID-19 restrictions.
Police in tactical gear quickly gained ground Saturday against demonstrators who are facing one of the biggest police enforcement actions in Canada’s history, with officers drawn from around the country.
Around midday Saturday, protest organizers said they had ordered truckers to move away from Parliament Hill.
At least 147 people had been arrested on Friday and Saturday, mostly on mischief charges, and nearly two dozen vehicles had been towed, including all of those blocking one of the city’s major streets.
