Police in riot gear clashed with at least 1,000 protesters in southwest Dublin on Tuesday outside an asylum seeker hotel, following allegations that a 10-year-old girl was sexually assaulted.
Local media reported that a 26-year-old man accused of assaulting the girl was an asylum seeker and that the incident took place on the grounds of the Citywest Hotel that houses asylum applicants in Saggart, southwest of the Irish capital.
Protesters carrying Irish flags and signs of “Irish lives matter” while chanting “get them out” launched bottles and fireworks at police.
A police van was set on fire as an AFP correspondent witnessed officers charging at protesters and using pepper spray to push them away from the hotel complex.
Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin condemned the “violent disorder” and “vile abuse” against police in a statement.
The suspect appeared in court on Tuesday charged in connection to the sexual assault, which allegedly took place at a location near the hotel.
The alleged victim was in state care at the time of the incident, with child and family agency Tusla confirming she “absconded” during a trip to the city centre and was reported missing.
Earlier in the day, Martin said the events of the alleged assault were “extremely serious and very, very grave”.
Speaking in parliament, Martin acknowledged “the concern, anger and worry of many people throughout the country at what (is) alleged to have transpired here”.
“Clearly, there has been failure here in terms of the state’s obligation to protect this child,” he added.
Justice and migration minister Jim O’Callaghan “condemned” Tuesday’s disorder, noting the projectiles thrown at police.
“Unfortunately, the weaponising of a crime by people who wish to sow dissent in our society is not unexpected,” O’Callaghan said in a statement.
Ireland and the UK have seen rising anti-immigration sentiment in recent years, with hotels housing asylum seekers common flashpoints for protests and violent riots.
In June, hotels were targeted and dozens of officers injured in anti-immigrant unrest in Northern Ireland after two teenagers were arrested accused of attempting to rape a young girl in Ballymena.
Police did not confirm the ethnicity of the accused, who had asked for a Romanian interpreter in court, prompting what authorities described as the “racist” targeting of homes and businesses by rioters.
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