Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly faced off angry protesters on the campaign trail while seeking a third term in office in snap elections due to take place on September 20.
On Tuesday, as the Liberal Party leader was leaving an event at a microbrewery in London, Ontario, a crowd chanted “lock him up” as he boarded his campaign bus.
Someone in the crowd threw what appeared to be a handful of gravel at the prime minister. Trudeau, members of his security detail and journalists were reportedly struck. No one was injured.
The prime minister later confirmed that he was fine.
Trudeau’s main rivals, Conservative leader Erin O’Toole and New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh have condemned the incident.
Recently losing popularity, Trudeau has slipped in the polls and has repeatedly been surrounded with what he described as “anti-vaxxer mobs”, angry with his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Protesters have denounced his proposed mandatory COVID-19 vaccines and other crisis measures, and some shouted racial and misogynist slurs at his entourage.
“Yes, there is a small fringe element in this country that is angry, that doesn’t believe in science, that is lashing out with racist, misogynistic attacks,” Trudeau said at a campaign stop.
“But Canadians, the vast majority of Canadians, are not represented by them, and I know will not allow those voices, those special interest groups, those protesters – I don’t even want to call them protesters, those anti-vaxxer mobs – to dictate how this country gets through this pandemic.”
Last week, he was forced to cancel an event over security concerns.
Watch the full report in the video player above.