Police swept through the lingering protest of COVID-19 restrictions near the massive Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit to Canada on Sunday, arresting a few truckers and other protesters still attempting to block the nation's largest border crossing.
"Enforcement will continue in the demonstration area and there will be zero tolerance for illegal activity," Windsor, Ontario, police tweeted Sunday. "The public should avoid the area."
Police said the last vehicles were being towed away. It was not immediately clear when the bridge, shut down by protests for a week, would reopen. The bridge closure has severely hampered U.S.-Canada trade and prompted the auto industry to scale back production in both countries.
Handfuls of protesters were leaving the scene Sunday morning, including Kim Deon. He had joined the protest Saturday and returned again Sunday morning. Protesters had expected police "to do the push," he said.
"It's not the end," Deon said. "What happened here in the last week is showing the world and showing the rest of the country that, you know what, this needs to be done to stop what's going on in our country."
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On Saturday, officers wearing neon yellow vests over their uniforms had warned demonstrators over a public address system that they would be arrested if they didn't leave. Many protesters in pickups left voluntarily, honking their horns as they drove away. The larger trucks pulled away a short time later, blasting their air horns as they went.
Police warned in a statement that vehicles could be seized.
"Once a vehicle is seized, it may be detained and, following a conviction, possibly forfeited," the statement said.
Why are truckers in Canada protesting?
Protesters, who have created havoc the capital in Ottawa for three weeks, say they object to Canada's COVID rules. Truckers calling themselves the Freedom Convoy are opposing a mandate requiring drivers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated or face testing and quarantine requirements.
The protest has shut down the busiest trade crossing between the U.S. and Canada and prompted calls for action from both the White House and Trudeau.
"We’ll continue to make sure municipal, provincial, and federal authorities have what they need to end the blockades and protect public safety," Trudeau tweeted Saturday night.
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Former President Donald Trump, along with several other U.S. Republican leaders, have been vocal in their support of the Canadian protesters – to the chagrin of Trudeau and others attempting to restore order in Canada. Trump, speaking Saturday on "Fox & Friends," said he was proud to see many of the protesters waving Trump banners.
"You can push people so far and our country is a tinderbox too, don't kid yourself," Trump said. "And there are plenty (of people from) our country up there right now."
Protests spread to other countries
Protests at the bridge as well as those 500 miles to the east in Ottawa and elsewhere in Canada have triggered similar protests around the world. Convoys have locked up traffic in France and the Netherlands. In New Zealand, authorities blared Barry Manilow music through loudspeakers in an effort to drive off protesters.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security warned that truck convoys may become an issue in the U.S., possibly as soon as Sunday linked to the Super Bowl being played in Los Angeles.
In Windsor, Bob Rae, Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, tweeted a video of pickup trucks rolling away from the bridge.
"Rule of law can prevail over the swagger of intimidation," Rae wrote.
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An ex-Cabinet minister in Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government challenged her former federal colleagues as well as the province and city for not putting an end to the protests.
“Amazingly, this isn’t just Ottawa. It’s the nation’s capital,” Catherine McKenna tweeted. “But no one – not the city, the province or the federal government can seem to get their act together to end this illegal occupation. It’s appalling. … Just get your act together. Now.”
Ambassador Bridge is a crucial crossing
The Ambassador Bridge is the busiest U.S.-Canadian border crossing, carrying 25% of all trade between the two countries. On Friday, a Canadian judge ordered the protesters to clear out or face arrest.
Canada's Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said the blockades are hurting Canadian families, workers and businesses.
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"Glad to see the Windsor Police & its policing partners commenced enforcement at and near the Ambassador Bridge,” he tweeted. “These blockades must stop.”
Contributing: John Wisely, Lily Altavena, Detroit Free Press; The Associated Press
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