Ottawa Councillor Says Freedom Convoy Protesters Are 'Terrorists' Who Are 'Torturing' Locals

Protesters participating in the ongoing Freedom Convoy in Ottawa have been dubbed “terrorists” by a city councillor, who also said the group is "torturing" local residents.

The convoy — which has been in downtown Ottawa since January 29 — has been catching flack for alleged disrespect to Ottawa monuments and harassing of homeless shelters in the city, among other things.

Participants in the protest include people who are against vaccine mandates and government-imposed COVID-19 lockdowns.

"This group is emboldened by the lack of enforcement by every level of government," said Ottawa City Councillor Diane Deans in a special police board meeting on Saturday, according to CBC News.

Deans even went as far as to refer to the protesters as "terrorists."

“They are terrorizing our residents, torturing them with incessant honking, threatening them and preventing them from leading their lives," she said.

Later, she added, “This group is a threat to our democracy. What we're seeing is bigger than just a city of Ottawa problem. This is a nationwide insurrection.”

Along with that, Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly said that the police service is in need of an “additional surge of resources.”

“We do not have sufficient resources to adequately and effectively address this situation while adequately and effectively providing policing in this city,” he said.

Since the beginning of the protests, OPS have responded to 400 calls related to the demonstrations and 50 criminal offences are under investigation with 11 of those being hate crimes that resulted in four charges.

There have also been seven arrests and 70 traffic violation tickets given out. This is all while 7,000 demonstrators flooded the city on January 29 and 500 heavy trucks still remain in the downtown core — deemed the "red zone."

On February 3, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’s willing to look at requests for military support to deal with the protests, although the situation has apparently not yet escalated to that level.

In addition to the demonstrations on Parliament Hill, there have been similar convoy protests across the country including in Vancouver, Toronto and more.

These events continue even after GoFundMe removed the donation campaign that had raised around $10 million, with all the money being returned to donators.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.