Fire breaks out in Coolock factory after hundreds protest over asylum seeker plans
A building on fire at the old Crowne Paints facility in Coolock
Rocks, glass bottles and fireworks were thrown at gardaí in Coolock this evening after a disused warehouse was set on fire - the second time in 24 hours.
What was expected to be a peaceful protest turned into an almost four-hour tense and, at times violent, standoff between anti-immigration agitators and gardaí.
It comes following a week of unrest in Coolock in north Dublin over the proposed housing of 500 international protection applicants at the former Crown Paints warehouse on the Malahide Road.
The protest has been ongoing for more than three months; however, violence broke out on Monday when construction workers tried to enter the property with equipment.
A JCB and mattresses were all set on fire and the public order unit was deployed to the area to tackle the violence.
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In a statement tonight, An Garda Síochána said: "Gardaí are currently responding to a public order incident occurring at a premises on the Malahide Road, Coolock, Dublin 17.
A small fire which broke out at the same location a short time ago is being attended to by Dublin Fire Brigade.
No injuries have been reported."
Just after 6pm on Friday evening, a rally got underway at the entrance of the warehouse which heard from local councillors and representatives from the area.
Dozens of families, including young children then marched to the nearby Coolock garda station.
Some protestors carried banners that said, “The new planation” and “Get them out”.
Hunger striker Bobby Sands was referenced throughout the speeches, and one councillor received a cheer when he quoted from the Mel Gibson film , and said: “They’ll never take our freedom."
When the protestors returned to the Crown Paints Warehouse, part of the building was on fire and thick black smoke could be seen overhead.
Dozens of the people in attendance then climbed up on the wall surrounding the property to film it on fire.
In a post on X, Dublin Fire Brigade said “Two fire engines from North Strand fire station are currently attending a fire at this former Crown Paints site.
“The fire is under control and firefighting operations are continuing to extinguish the fire”.
The Public Order Units arrived on the scene just after 8pm and some of the crowd began shouting at them.
The gardaí then formed a line across the road before three men draped the Irish flag across their shoulders and got down on their knees in the middle of the road where they remained for 20minutes.
Men in the crowd shouted, “you’re f****king scum” at the gardaí and “come on, take me on” as well as “rats”.
The Public Order Unit then formed a second line, and they stopped traffic at both junctions near the Crown Paints Warehouse.
Rocks and fireworks continued to be thrown at the gardaí while dozens of protestors ran from the scene screaming.
Pepper spray was used on some of the crowd on Monday and people in the rally are now wearing plastic shields during the gatherings.
While standing in line last night, up to 18 rocks, and glass bottles were thrown at the Public Order unit.
Some protestors remained sitting outside the Crown Paints building, while the carpark in the Omniplex was also cleared by gardaí.
By 9:30pm the fire at the building was extinguished the fire brigade left the scene.
The violence on Friday night comes after a week of unrest in the area that has seen the Fire Brigade, ambulances, the Public Order Unit and uniformed gardaí as well as the air unit patrol the area, while shops had to close.
A total of 21 people has been charged in connection with scenes of disorder near former Crown Paints factory on Malahide Road.
Speaking in Donegal on Friday, Taoiseach Simon Harris said that people had the right to protest but that what has happened in Coolock "is not that".
"What we've seen in recent days has not been that. What we have seen in recent days, has been an attempt by a relatively small number of people to engage in lawlessness, to engage in thuggery and to engage in criminal activity. That's why there have been several arrests.
"I have a very clear understanding of the difference between protest and lawlessness between protest and criminality. What I would say to everybody in this country is that it's very important everybody does too, because if you engage in protest, you will be fully protected by the law. If you engage in lawlessness, if you cross the line and you engage in thuggery, you will meet the full rigours of the law."
Mr Harris said that he was aware that "this is not reflective of the community of Coolock". He said he wanted to acknowledge "very publicly" that there have been local people in Coolock who have "called for this to stop".
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