Hamilton police fly drones over area near protest

Hamilton police flew drones over an area near a protest in the Hamilton community of Flamborough.

Police didn’t state what the protest was about, though users on social media noted that anti-war demonstrations were taking place in Waterdown.

“Hamilton Police are deploying the RPAS to ensure public safety as a result of a public demonstration in the area of Clappison’s Corners,” police wrote Friday (Nov. 10) on X. “There is a large police presence in the area as we work to ensure the safety of everyone in attendance.”

Police concluded flying the Remotely Piloted Aircraft System about an hour later, just after noon.

Hamilton4Palestine, a local grassroots group, posted on Instagram on Friday morning that demonstrators gathered at L3Harris Technologies at 50 Leavitt Blvd. in Waterdown. The group said Indigenous Peoples of many nations were standing in solidarity with Palestinians, calling out “oppressors.” Inthehammer.com couldn’t verify details of the protest from police and didn’t hear back from L3Harris about the protest targeting its facility. It was not immediately clear if the drones were deployed for this particular demonstration.

More than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip since the Israel-Hamas war started Oct. 7, including over 4,000 children, as of Nov. 10. The Israeli army accuses Hamas of using human shields in the besieged territory, locating its operations in hospitals and neighbourhoods. The over 100,000 Palestinians who fled south still face the threat of bombs, The Associated Press reported. The latest round of hostilities started when Hamas, designated a terrorist group by Canada, launched surprise attacks, killing more than 1,400 and kidnapping more than 200 in Israel on Oct. 7.