The Freedom Convoy was a “far-right extremist movement” that “terrorized” Ottawa, a Liberal-appointed senator said yesterday. Remarks by Senator Ratna Omidvar (Ont.) contradicted police evidence that Parliament Hill demonstrators were neither extremist nor violent.

The remarks came in Senate Question Period attended by Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino. Senator Omidvar in questioning the Minister likened Freedom Convoy demonstrators to terrorists.

“I would like to query you about the rise of far-right extremist movements in Canada,” said Omidvar. “We saw some of this spillover in real time when some members of the Freedom Convoy terrorized the residents of Ottawa for three weeks.”

“What is the government doing to track this?” asked Omidvar. “Specifically, are you tracking how these extremists are influencing politicians in Canada? Are intelligence agencies briefing parliamentarians who are being targeted by the far-right extremist movements? I know the talk is all about foreign interference, but what about domestic interference?”