Three members of the Canadian Special Operations Forces have been investigated by the military after they allegedly expressed support for ongoing vaccine-mandate protests that have gripped Ottawa for two weeks, the command said in a statement on Sunday.
“I have recently been advised of allegations that at least three CANSOFCOM [Canadian Special Operations Forces Command] members have been, in some form or another, supporting the ongoing protests in Ottawa,” Commander Major-General Steve Boivin said.
It’s not clear whether the personnel took to the streets of the Canadian capital, joining the truckers and their supporters in person, or have otherwise stated their approval of the protest.
In one case, the force was alerted of an alleged transgression on February 1, with Boivin noting that the member involved was already in the process of being released from the army at the time.
The other two cases were reported last Thursday, and one of the members was likewise in the process of being terminated. The fate of the third member, who apparently is an active-duty serviceman, is still to be determined.
Boivin argued that the force members had “jeopardized the apolitical imperative” by voicing their support for the protests. “I expect our members to act in a way that demonstrates Canadian Armed Forces values and ethics, and to uphold them both on and off duty,” he said.
Canadian officials, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, have repeatedly referred to the protests as an illegal blockade, while effecively comparing truckers and their allies to the Nazis. Trudeau threatened protesters camping along the US-Canada border and elsewhere with “severe consequences” if they refuse to disperse on their own, and said that the residents of Ottawa “don’t deserve to be confronted with the inherent violence of a swastika… or a Confederate flag.”
While predominantly peaceful protests in Ottawa have been ongoing for two weeks, paralyzing the city center, the government moved to clear a key US-Canada border crossing over the weekend, arresting the remaining protesters and towing their vehicles on Sunday after a court injunction paved the way for a police crackdown on demonstrators blocking the Ambassador Bridge. The operator of the bridge declared on Monday that the route was “fully open” for traffic.
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