Police began removing protestors this morning from rail blockades in Ontario. The blockades have brought freight to a standstill on a key portion of Canadian National’s network for more than two weeks, causing supply chain disruptions throughout Canada.
Ontario Provincial Police moved to enforce a court injunction and remove the protest encampments near Belleville, Ontario after a midnight deadline expired to clear the area.
The blockades in Mohawk territory began in solidarity with efforts by the hereditary leaders of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation in British Columbia to fight the proposed route of the Coastal Gaslink pipeline through their territory in British Columbia.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday called for the removal of the Ontario blockade and several others in Canada as damage to Canada’s supply chains and the economy worsened.
The blockade near Belleville, in the middle of the Toronto-Montreal corridor, led CN to shut down its entire eastern Canada network and suspend transcontinental rail service.
This story is developing.
