Five arrested as anti-COVID-19 mandate convoys, rallies staged in British Columbia

3:24‘Surge and contain’: Ottawa police signal new strategy to handle disruptive protesters‘Surge and contain’: Ottawa police signal new strategy to handle disruptive protestersThe events in B.C. come as the protest in Ottawa entered its second week.Story continues below advertisementThat demonstration, which initially began as a convoy spearheaded by cross-border truckers upset at the elimination of their vaccine exemption, has morphed into an encampment near Parliament Hill espousing a variety of goals, ranging from the end of all COVID-19 mandates to the removal of the government.Demonstrators in Ottawa have been accused of desecrating monuments and harassing downtown residents wearing masks. Some of the convoy’s organizers also have a documented history of white nationalism and racism.On Friday, GoFundMe deactivated a $10 million fundraising campaign for the Ottawa protesters, saying what had begun as a sincere peaceful protest had evolved to violate its terms of service, “with police reports of violence and other unlawful activity.”Similar convoys and demonstrations were also scheduled in cities across Canada.© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.