The Canadian military police have started investigating two more soldiers allegedly involved in supporting trucker protests against COVID-19 restrictions, the National Post reported on Thursday, citing Canadian Defense spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier.
Le Bouthillier provided no further details on the investigations, according to the paper but stressed that military personnel have to observe the rules and the code of conduct of the Canadian forces.
"Those who disregard these principles not only demonstrate an extreme lack of understanding of the military profession, they undermine the very foundation of the Canadian Armed Forces. Any member of the armed forces who brings discredit to the CAF through either conduct or performance deficiencies, be it through actions or words, will be held accountable," Le Bouthillier said, as quoted by the newspaper.
According to the National Post, in total, nine members of the country's military are suspected of participating in the anti-government demonstrations or supporting them on social media.
Except for the two new cases, all investigations are reportedly being carried out at the unit level. The accused soldiers face disciplinary action up to expulsion from the Canadian military.
Several individuals under investigation are already leaving the country's forces due to their unwillingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19, the newspaper said.
The wave of protests across Canada began in January, with thousands of truckers and hundreds of other demonstrators converging on Ottawa to express strong opposition to vaccine mandates for truckers crossing the US-Canada border. Protesters demanded that the authorities remove COVID-19 restrictions.
The protest has since evolved into an anti-government demonstration, with various groups uniting in opposition to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and calling for the overthrow of the government. The prime minister and his family were moved to a different location from their home in the capital city amid the trucker protest, according to Canadian media reports. (ANI/Sputnik)
( With inputs from ANI )
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor