Justice minister reiterates Dublin is safe following city centre assault

A garda spokesperson said: “A woman, aged in her 50s, was conveyed to St James’s Hospital for treatment of injuries believed to be non-life-threatening at this time.”

Sections of Exchequer Street, along with Wicklow Street and Grafton Street, were cordoned off on Thursday morning following the incident.

Investigations into the assault remain ongoing.

Speaking earlier on Thursday, the justice minister Jim O’Callaghan repeated his view that Dublin is a safe place despite recent high-profile incidents, including the latest incident overnight.

“Obviously, an incident like last night gets a lot of media attention, but I think we need to reflect upon the fact that it is not representative in general,” he said. 

“Dublin is a very safe place, and I want to see more people coming into Dublin.

“The message I want to give is that people should not be taking knives out with them. If you bring a knife out with you at nighttime, or even during the daytime, if there is going to be trouble, it is going to elevate that trouble to very serious areas.

“People should not be bringing knives. The word needs to go out loud and clear that it is unacceptable. It is a criminal offence for you to carry a knife without lawful authority.”

Mr O’Callaghan said Dublin is a large city and that no government or garda commissioner can ensure there will be no criminal activity.

“But I am pleased with the new high visibility policing and the increased numbers coming into An Garda Siochana that there's a greater sense of safety around the city,” he added.

Mr O’Callaghan said there were no gun-related killings in Ireland last year and that there have been none in 2026 to date.

“I mentioned that to a series of federal attorneys general from the United States were over here,” he continued.

“They presumed I had got it wrong. So, in terms of homicides in Ireland, we're at the very low level when it comes to global comparison.”