Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Monday (January 31) he had tested positive for COVID-19 but was feeling fine and would continue to work remotely while following public health guidelines.
Trudeau, 50, went into isolation for two weeks in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic after his wife, Sophie, tested positive for COVID-19.
Trudeau also said Canadians were disgusted by the behavior of some people protesting against COVID-19 vaccine mandates in Ottawa and said he would not be intimidated by those hurling abuse.
Dozens of trucks and other vehicles have jammed up central Ottawa since Friday and thousands descended upon Parliament Hill to complain about Trudeau and COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Police said most demonstrators have been peaceful but local residents complain they are fed up with the non-stop blaring of truck horns and demonstrators using the streets as an open-air toilet. Some also forced a homeless shelter to give them food – the shelter said on Twitter – while others flew Nazi flags.
“We are not intimated by those who hurl abuse at small business workers and steal food from the homeless,” Trudeau told a news conference.
“We won’t give in to those who fly racist flags. We won’t cave to those who engage in vandalism … There is no place in our country for threats, violence, or hatred,” he added.
Senior members of the official opposition Conservative Party, which last year lost its third consecutive election to Trudeau’s Liberals, have praised the demonstrators.
