Irish police arrest 23 in Dublin during second evening of disorder

Twenty-three people have been arrested and two police officers injured during a second night of disorder outside a Dublin hotel housing asylum seekers.

Peaceful protests started near the the CityWest Hotel in Saggart, west Dublin, earlier this week over an alleged sexual assault of a young girl in the area, but by Tuesday they had turned violent.

Rioters threw bottles and bricks, and discharged fireworks at officers on Wednesday evening, according to the police.

Two officers were taken to hospital for treatment, with one struck on the head by a bottle and the other sustaining an injury to their arm and shoulder.

“The public disorder was predominantly carried out by young adult males and teenagers,” the police said in a statement.

More than 300 members of the police were involved in policing operations over the course of the evening, including 120 public order officers.

The arrests on Wednesday evening came after seven others were detained for their involvement in earlier incidents outside the hotel.

On Wednesday, five men, aged in their 40s and 50s, appeared in court on public order charges.

Speaking on Wednesday about the events of the previous evening, Police Commissioner Justin Kelly condemned the disorder as “totally unacceptable”.

“This was violence with the intent to damage the CityWest Building and intimidate those within,” he said. “I am determined that further persons will be identified and brought before the courts to face justice.”

Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, the Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin praised the police for their “bravery, courage and professionalism” in responding to a “very serious and grave situation”.

“The gardaí [police] come from our community. They are there to protect us all. It beggars belief that these people would articulate such vile abuse, and would then attack them in a very serious way,” he said.