THOUSANDS OF VEHICLES, PEDESTRIANS ARIVE WITH TRUCK CONVOY IN OTTAWA.

Chandrayee Roy Choudhury, Canada: Traffic disruptions in Ottawa's downtown core are expected to peak Sunday , Monday with the main demonstration of the truck convoy and thousands of additional protesters having arrived in full force on Parliament Hill.

Originally planned against vaccine mandates in the trucking industry, the protest has attracted international attention and grown to become a wider demonstration against the federal government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Streets in downtown Ottawa have been clogged with hundreds of vehicles, many of them transport trucks, and thousands of pedestrians who are congregating on Parliament Hill.
Police are also expecting around 5,000 pedestrians from Gatineau, Que. to make their way to Parliament Hill today. 

Police Chief Peter Sloly said Friday morning there were also "social media actors locally, nationally and " who may or may not be in Ottawa but "are nonetheless inciting hate, violence and in some cases criminality to take place in our city."

Ottawa Public Health has also closed its vaccine clinic at the University of Ottawa this weekend due to the disruptions.

Police continue to ask residents to avoid the downtown core unless it's necessary.