The “suspicious incident” that led to the evacuation of Parliament and the deployment of numerous heavily armed police Saturday followingnoon on Parliament Hill in Ottawa was found to be unfounded, police said.
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“The investigation into a suspicious incident on Parliament Hill has been completed. No threat to public safety has been identified. The area is reopened to the public,” Ottawa police shared on Twitter around 4:15 p.m.
This mysterious incident had led the Ottawa police to cordon off a vast quadrilateral in the city center at the beginning of the followingnoon.
“Several streets have been closed and there is a heavy police presence. Do not enter the area and follow the directions of the police,” the police had asked.
According to Global News, which cites anonymous police sources, the police intervened because of a bomb threat deemed credible. Two vehicles were searched and arrests took place, the television channel said.
The Parliamentary Protective Service has confirmed to various media that it had to evacuate Parliament.
“Earlier today, an alert was sent via the Emergency Notification System to all parliamentarians and employees of the Parliamentary Protective Service regarding an ongoing operation with a possible threat,” it read. in the statement relayed by CTV News.
According to local media, members of the military police, the parliamentary security service and paramedics were also deployed on the spot.