Rioting attributed to the far-right erupted on Thursday evening in Dublin following a knife attack earlier during the day in which five people were stabbed outside a school in the city centre. Three of those injured were children aged five and six.
The knife attack occurred at 13:40 local time as a group of schoolchildren were waiting in line. Described by a witness as "absolute bedlam", police cordoned of the area whilst the victims – one little girl critically injured – were attended to.
Police detained an injured man in his 50s, with sources indicating to the BBC that the suspect is an Irish citizen. Whilst the police initially ruled out terrorist motives, Police Commissioner Drew Harris later stated that any possible motive is not being ruled out.
The exact link to the subsequent riots is not immediately clear. Commissioner Harris stated on Friday morning that agitators "stormed through the cordon" of the crime scene whilst police were investigating the stabbing earlier in the day. Speaking to media on Thursday night, a senior police official said called the riots "gratuitous thuggery" that were not related to the attack.
'Far-right crazy hooligans'
Harris branded the participants a "faction of crazy hooligans driven by far-right ideologies" and said that whilst the events that led to the serious injuries in the early afternoon were still unclear, "rumours and insinuations" had quickly spread for malicious purposes.
One protester was heard to assert "Irish people are being attacked by these filth" while others in the crowd referenced the recent life sentence of a Slovakian national for the murder of a young teacher.
In the context of a national housing crisis, Ireland has seen a rise in an anti-immigration narrative arguing that "Ireland is full", influenced by far-right figures.
After a man injured five people in a knife attack in Dublin, rioting broke out, with anti-immigrant protesters clashing with riot police, burning down vehicles, and looting shops https://t.co/I05z6Wnpsz pic.twitter.com/ybFyR984Ul
— Reuters (@Reuters) November 24, 2023
The violence quickly escalated, directed at forces of law and order and properties in the area. Multiple vehicles, including a police car and a bus, were set ablaze, with some shops looted, according to an AFP reporter. Signs stating "Irish Lives Matter" and Irish flags were brandished. Early reports estimate that participants numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands.
The riots began in a neighbourhood home to many immigrants, amidst rumours concerning the origin of the presumed aggressor. The police only disclosed that the attacker was a fifty-year-old man who has been hospitalised.
Law enforcement officials became targets of projectiles from a crowd exhibiting hostility towards mainstream media. By 22:00, the streets of central Dublin were reported to be "mostly calm" by the police.
"We will not tolerate a small number inciting division utilising horrendous incidents," Minister of Justice Helen McEntee said, calling for calm. She also warned that attacks against the police should be "condemned" and would be handled "with severity". McEntee stated that rioters could face prison sentences of up to 12 years.
Credit: Belga
