– Demonstrators continue to be aggressive and attack the police. They refused to obey orders to move. Therefore, you can see police officers using chemicals in an attempt to stop them and for police safety, Ottawa police wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

Canadian Broadcasting Company CBC wrote that the pepper spray was used by the police against aggressive protesters, and the police denied that it was a tear gas problem.

About 150 people have been arrested since police broke into action on Friday. On Saturday, they advanced further along Wellington Street, where most of the protesters had settled in tent towns and with about 300 large trucks and camper vans.

Occupied Center

Protesters in the so-called Freedom Column have been protesting vaccine measures and the Canadian government for several weeks, blocking the area around the parliament building in central Ottawa with their trucks.

The Freedom Column began as a group of truck drivers drove into Ottawa in their large trailers, in protest against vaccine passport requirements for crossing the border to and from the United States.

The protests, led by some on the extreme right, eventually developed into a general protest against all vaccine actions and Canadian authorities.

It also attracted far-right extremists and war veterans, some of whom were armed, and received support from former US President Donald Trump, Tesla founder Elon Musk and even former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Ultimatum

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau finally declared a state of emergency to deal with the situation, and police gave protesters the choice to leave the scene or risk being arrested and their cars confiscated.

In addition to the 47 arrested on Saturday, 38 vehicles, including large trailers, have been seized and towed.

Some of those arrested had bulletproof vests and bags full of smoke grenades and fireworks.

But there were fewer protesters in the city on Saturday than the day before, as many were seen leaving in their trucks.