The knife attack occurred on Parnell Square in central Dublin. Image credit: Oliver Gargan, Wikimedia Commons
Violent protests have broken out in Dublin after a woman and three young children were injured in a knife attack outside a school.
Police confirmed that the woman and a five-year-old girl were seriously injured and receiving emergency medical treatment in hospital.
The other two children sustained less serious injuries.
Police detained a man in his 50s that they considered to be a “person of interest”.
It is believed that witnesses attempted to disarm the man at an early stage of the attack and injured him in the process.
Hours later, a group of at least 100 people gathered across central Dublin chanting anti-immigrant slogans.
The crowds broke into stores, looted goods, and set fire to police cars.
A tram and a bus were also damaged during the riots.
The anti-immigrant group claimed the man responsible for the knife attack was a “foreigner”, but police did not identify the man they had arrested.
Superintendent Liam Geraghty said the knife attack was believed to be a “standalone incident” and not being treated as terror related.
Police chief Drew Harris said the cause of the unrest was due to a “complete lunatic faction driven by far-right ideology”.
“It’s our responsibility to make sure that we police the streets, and part of that is we ask people to act responsibly and not to listen to the misinformation and rumour that is circulating on social media,” he said.
Irish President Michael D Higgins said his thoughts were with the children and families affected by the attack outside the school.
“We are particularly thinking of the 5-year-old girl and the member of staff caring for her who are both in serious condition in hospital,” he wrote in a statement.
“This appalling incident is a matter for the Gardaí (Irish police) and that it would be used or abused by groups with an agenda that attacks the principle of social inclusion is reprehensible and deserves condemnation by all those who believe in the rule of law and democracy.”
Local politicians also expressed their horror at the “disturbing” incidents.
The National Educational Psychological Service is providing support to the school community during this time.
