A clean-up operation is underway in Dublin City Centre this morning, following a night of violence and rioting.
The Garda Commissioner says 34 people were arrested throughout the course of last nights rioting and violence in the capital.
32 of those arrested are due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin this morning.
13 shops were damaged or looted throughout the night, including some along O'Connell Street and Mary Street.
11 Garda vehicles were damaged or destroyed as part of the violence, including some which were set on fire in the early stages of the riots.
3 buses and 1 Luas tram were also damaged.
Videos and pictures circulating online show the violence, including fireworks and objects being thrown at Gardaí, objects being set on fire and windows of shops and buildings being smashed so the crowds could gain access.
The majority of the violence occurred between Parnell Street and O'Connell Street.
Members of An Garda Síochana were brought in from outside of the city to help in controlling the situation throughout the evening, with there being 400 members of the force o the streets at the peak.
The Commissioner has also said one Garda is seriously injured, but no details on the condition of the officer have been released.
Drew Harris says thousands of hours of video and CCTV footage will in analysed in order to identify people involved in riots and violence around the O'Connell Street and Parnell Street areas.
Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, says she expects many more arrests in the coming days:
"This was a group of people who used, what was an awful act of violence earlier on in the day, to as an excuse, and that's all it was, as an excuse to wreak havoc, to conduct criminal acts, to loot, to be violent, to assault members of an Garda Síochana, and to wreak havoc in our city, and they should be treated as what they are and that is criminals."
The riots and violence were sparked after a stabbing incident outside a school on Parnell Square yesterday afternoon.
A 5-year-old girl remains in a critical condition in hospital following the attack.
Two other young children and a woman in her 30s were also treated for injuries after the attack.
The suspect, a man in his late 40s, was arrested at the scene and was taken to hospital.
The Education Minister, Norma Foley, says a number of measures are in place to support the school and those connected to the incident:
"Our school psychologists will work with the schools as long as the schools need it.
All of our schools across the country will have what's called a critical incident plan. We would hope that they would never ever have to invoke that, but in incidents like occurred yesterday, the critical incident plan is invoked.
Over the coming days, there will be a critical incident management team within the school."
Disruptions to traffic and travel
As a result of last night's activities, a number of areas around the city are closed today.
For the Luas, red Line services are not operating between Smithfield and The Point. Green Line services are not running between St. Stephen's Green and Broombridge.
⚠️Red Line services are operating Tallaght / Saggart to Smithfield only. There is no service operating between Smithfield and Connolly / The Point.
Green Line services are operating Brides Glen to St. Stephen’s Green. There is no service operating between St. Stephen's…— Luas (@Luas) November 24, 2023
In terms of other public transport, services are running as usual, except buses cannot serve Parnell Street, Parnell Square, and O’Connell Street, with diversions via Gardiner Street and Church Street.
A clean-up operation is underway, with members of the council and emergency services removing the remaining debris for the streets and guarding the looted and damaged shops.
A heavy Garda presence remains throughout the city today.
