Police retake Wellington Street amid hard push against 'Freedom Convoy' occupation
CTV
Police have moved protesters off of Wellington Street in front of Parliament as part of an aggressive push to remove the 'Freedom Convoy' demonstration that has occupied Ottawa streets for three weeks.
Armed with batons and wearing helmets, and reportedly deploying pepper spray at times, police moved quickly Saturday morning to push a line of protesters back from near the Chateau Laurier hotel on Wellington Street. By 11 a.m., the police line had moved the protesters onto O'Connor Street. Images showed two lines of officers on either side of Wellington Street near O'Connor, retaking the central hub of the occupation on Parliament Hill.
The operation began at around 9:15 a.m., as a line of officers moved out of the Chateau Laurier hotel and began to push the protest line back. Police have confirmed at least one arrest, though the full number is not yet known. More than 100 arrests were made Friday.
Live video from the scene showed smoke in the crowd at times as police and protesters clashed. Ottawa police claimed the smoke did not come from officers. Police claimed protesters have been launching gas canisters at officers. Police later said they arrested protesters wearing body armour, who allegedly had smoke grenades and fireworks on them. Other smoke grenades and fireworks were allegedly found in a vehicle. Protesters have set off fireworks regularly at night through the last three weeks.
Senior police sources tell CTV News Ottawa's Graham Richardson they expect to "break the back" of the ongoing occupation that has paralyzed downtown Ottawa.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is a Swiftie. His office confirmed to CTV News Toronto that he and members of his family are attending the penultimate show of Taylor Swift's 'The Eras Tour' in Toronto on Friday evening.
Investigators are working to piece together what caused an explosion and fire at a six-plex in the southeast Calgary community of Mahogany.
London fire crews and police are on scene of a house fire in east London. Crews were called to the 1800 block of Culver Drive, east of Third Street and south of Oxford Street, around 11:30 a.m.
A teen who pleaded guilty in the death of 17-year-old Tyson MacDonald on Prince Edward Island last year has been sentenced to two years in custody.
An additional 160,000 students in Ontario will get access to free meals, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced at a Brampton, Ont. school Friday.
The Liberal government is pulling out the federal wallet to put more money into people's pockets over the holidays, but its recently announced affordability measures create winners and losers.
A jury has found two men guilty on human smuggling charges in a case where a family from India froze to death in Manitoba while trying to walk across the Canada-U.S. border.
Calgary is under a snowfall warning with total amounts of 15 to 25 centimetres expected.
Pat King, one of the most prominent figures of the 2022 'Freedom Convoy' in Ottawa, has been found guilty on five counts including mischief and disobeying a court order.
An 81-year-old was killed in a dog attack this week in Bonfield, Ont. Police believe three dogs were involved.
An 81-year-old Quebec man has been sentenced to prison after admitting to killing his wife with Alzheimer's disease.