The events in Coolock yesterday were 'pure thuggery', according to the Taoiseach.
21 people appeared in court charged with public order offences with the Justice Minister Helen McEntee saying that number is likely to rise. Tensions escalated in the area with anti-immigration crowds pelting Gardaí with missiles amid a dispute over a planned centre for asylum seekers. Taoiseach Simon Harris praised the response of the Gardaí:
"Every community has a right to be engaged with. What we saw last night was such a distance away from a question about community engagement. It was sheer thuggery and it should be called out as such and I really want to thank the Gardaí for the very swift action they took in a very difficult circumstance that amounted to many arrests and people before the courts".
