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16th July 2024
11:42am BST
Taoiseach Simon Harris has slammed the 'sheer thuggery' following shocking scenes in Coolock on Monday.
Up to 19 people were arrested and 15 were charged before courts since violence broke out in the Dublin suburb on Monday afternoon.
The incident happened after Gardaí cleared an encampment of people protesting against the former Crown Paints factory on the Malahide Road being used as accommodation for asylum seekers.
In the ensuing chaos - in which a JCB and a garda car were set on fire - around 200 Gardaí were deployed, including members of the Public Order Unit.
Speaking to RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland on Tuesday morning, the Taoiseach said Gardaí and site workers shouldn't have been put in danger.
"I've had it up to here with this 'whataboutery'," he said.
"We will continue to communicate better with communities – good, decent people across the country who want to talk about legitimate issues.
"There's such a role for that, every community has a right to be engaged with, [but] all we saw last night was such a distance away from my question about community engagement.
"It was sheer thuggery. It should be called out as such, and I want to really thank the Gardaí for the very swift action they took in a very difficult circumstance that amounted to many arrests."
In a statement on Monday evening, he added that "no person has a right to burn cars, damage property, or attack members of An Garda Síochána and emergency services.
"These actions are criminal and are designed to sow fear and division.
“We should not accept them being legitimised in any way by describing them as ‘protest’."
Meanwhile, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has defended the response from the Gardaí in Coolock.
"It is unacceptable that Gardaí would be targeted in the way that they were," she told Morning Ireland on Tuesday.
"I want to commend them for the way in which they responded," she said, describing it as "quickly and in force".
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris commented on the incident, calling it a "difficult policing day" and labelling the violence as "unacceptable".
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