Irish Examiner view: Coolock unrest highlights the urgent need to combat mob rule

Political leaders and gardaí are trying to deal with the fallout from violent disturbances that were uncomfortably reminiscent of the Dublin riots last November

Gardaí detaining protesters after a number of fires were started at the former site of the Crown Paints factory in Coolock, north Dublin, on Monday. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

On Tuesday, Taoiseach Simon Harris said that no amount of community engagement could have prevented the “utter thuggery” that led to an arson attack on a planned asylum centre in North Dublin on Monday.

Perhaps he is right. When the petrol bombs and the balaclavas come out, the time for talking is over.