Police clear and arrest Covid protesters on major border bridge between US and Canada

Police have moved in to clear and arrest the remaining protesters on the busiest border bridge between Canada and the US.

Demonstrators opposed to Covid-19 restrictions have occupied the crossing, as another group paralysed downtown Ottowa - blocking roads with convoys of trucks.

The protests have reverberated across the country and beyond, with similar blockades in France, New Zealand and the Netherlands. The US Department of Homeland Security has already warned truck convoys may be in the works in the United States.

Windsor police said arrests were being made and vehicles were being towed just after dawn near the Ambassador Bridge that links their city — and numerous Canadian automotive plants — with Detroit.

It was not immediately clear when the bridge might be opened but Windsor’s mayor said he hoped it would be Sunday.

“Enforcement will continue in the demonstration area and there will be zero tolerance for illegal activity. The public should avoid the area,” Windsor police said.

Only a few protesters had remained after police on Saturday persuaded demonstrators to move their pickup trucks and others cars that they used to block a crossing that sees 25% of all trade between the two countries.

Protesters opposed to Covid regulations occupy downtown Ottowa

In Ottawa, the ranks of protesters swelled to what police said were 4,000 demonstrators on Saturday.

The city has seen similar expansions on past weekends, and loud music played as people milled about downtown where anti-vaccine demonstrators have been encamped since late January.

The row has prompted fury directed at authorities and politicians.

"The whole city is furious at being abandoned by the people who are supposed to protect us. They have completely abandoned the rule of law," tweeted Artur Wilczynski, a senior government national security official at Canada's Communications Security Establishment. He accused Ottawa police of having "lost credibility".

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has so far rejected calls to use the military, but had said that "all options are on the table” to end the protests that have slowed industries on both sides of the border. Mr Trudeau has called the protesters a “fringe” of Canadian society.

Both federal and provincial politicians have said they can't order police what to do.