The movement of Canadian truckers who have paralyzed Ottawa for more than two weeks continues to inspire internationally. After Paris and The Hague this weekend, now “freedom convoys” have decided to converge on Jerusalem, Brussels and Strasbourg.
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The largest demonstration took place in Israel, where several thousand vehicles, not trucks, took part. On the side of Strasbourg and Brussels, the authorities seem to have adopted a hard line, so that it does not seem to have lifted. Overview of what is happening elsewhere in the world.
STRASBOURG, FRANCE
Any “undeclared demonstration” of anti-vaccination passport convoys has been banned near the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
Several road convoys would have formed in order to join the European institutions and to obstruct road traffic. Some of the demonstrators were originally supposed to rally to Brussels, but are said to have changed their minds. A “device” of the police has therefore been put in place.
Invoking the “risks of disturbing public order”, the prefecture indicated that the ban on demonstrations is decreed for the duration of the monthly plenary session of the European Parliament, that is until Thursday evening.
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL
Thousands of cars and trucks converged on Jerusalem yesterday from several Israeli cities to demonstrate against health restrictions linked to the coronavirus pandemic.
Motorists took to the capital, Israeli flags waving from windows and posters calling for “freedom” pasted on car hoods.
This convoy, which was destined for the Parliament in the center of Jerusalem, caused major traffic jams against the backdrop of a concert of horns, noted AFP journalists who saw thousands of cars paralyze the city.
Organizers said tens of thousands of people took part in the demonstration, the first of its kind.
Israel was one of the first countries to launch a vast vaccination campaign, in December 2020. The Jewish state was also one of the first to introduce a health passport.
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
The massive arrival of hundreds of vehicles taking part in the “convoy for freedom” of Brussels will not have taken place, while the police had set up roadblocks to prevent the influx of demonstrators.
The Belgian authorities have blocked around thirty vehicles which were preparing to converge on the capital to oppose restrictions linked to health measures.
The protest was banned by authorities in Belgium and, after weekend rallies in France, Belgian police were deployed on several highways to screen access to the capital.
The police decided to direct the demonstrators from the convoys to a parking area.
More than a hundred protesters, however, joined the city center, but on foot.
Thirty people were arrested, according to local media, which did not report overflows in Brussels.