Canada will not use troops to deal with truckers’ protest, Trudeau says

The Canadian government has no plans to send in troops to deal with a vaccine mandate protest by truckers that has brought traffic in central Ottawa to a halt, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday.

More than 200 trucks and other vehicles have been blockading downtown roads in the nation’s capital since last Friday in what is an unprecedented protest by Canadian standards.

The city’s police chief, under fire for a passive response by officers, on Wednesday said using the military https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/refile-anti-vaccine-mandate-protesters-say-they-will-block-ottawa-long-necessary-2022-02-02 was an option.

“One has to be very, very cautious before deploying the military in situations engaging Canadians,” Trudeau said.

“This is not something we’re looking at right now. There is no question of sending in the army,” he told reporters.

Some of the demonstrators want an end to COVID-19 vaccine mandates for cross-border truckers while others insist Trudeau be removed from power.