The Calgary Police Service (CPS) charged three people with assaulting a peace officer and a fourth person with obstruction of a peace officer at a pro-Palestine protest on Sunday. “Despite four individuals being charged, there were hundreds of other demonstrators who showed up yesterday in a safe, lawful and peaceful manner,” said CPS Operational Support Division Supt. Joe Brar in a Monday press release. “Managing a crowd of this size for a prolonged period is extremely dynamic and cannot be reduced to short video clips that you might see on social media.”As police, CPS said its role is to facilitate safe, lawful and peaceful demonstrations in Calgary. It thanked the majority of protestors who were co-operative with it throughout the protest. As the main protest was coming to a peaceful conclusion, about 100 demonstrators separated from them and attempted to block a major road, creating a dangerous situation between drivers and them. Several people within this group were defiant with police and continued to impede traffic and escalate their behaviour, with some pushing through a line of police officers. Calgary residents Wassime Taha, 30; Wafik Kassem, 25; and Mohamed Hamdanie, 25, have each been charged with one count of assaulting a peace officer because they pushed through police officers to break a line. Taha, Kassem, and Hamdanie will next appear in court on January 12. Calgary resident Mervat Hamdanie, 27, has been charged with one count of obstruction of a peace officer after interfering while police made an arrest. Mervat will next appear in court on January 12. As arrests were being made, a youth was taken into custody for his involvement in attempting to break through the police line. He was released without charges. CPS appealed to all demonstrators to be responsible and protest within the laws. It said anyone who jeopardizes public peace, endangers people, or participates in illegal activities will be held accountable for their actions. If anyone feels they had inappropriate interactions with CPS, it said they can file a complaint through its Professional Standards Section.“Public safety is paramount in these situations, and our officers did an incredible job ensuring the demonstrations remained safe for all, despite escalating behaviours and with minimal impact to traffic and neighbouring Calgarians,” said Brar. Liberty Law lawyer Zachary Al-Khatib confirmed on Friday the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service stayed a charge against pro-Palestine protest leader Wesam Cooley. READ MORE: Charge stayed against Calgary pro-Palestine protest organizer“It’s heartening that the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service has acted swiftly,” said Al-Khatib. “It shows me that after considering the evidence and public interest, a decision was made that this case has no merit.”
