CLODAGH KILCOYNE/Reuters
- An assailant injured four people including three young children in a knife attack in central Dublin on Thursday.
- In the evening, rioters looted and set vehicles on fire in the area.
- Some Irish officials have blamed the riots on a far-right, anti-immigration "hooligan faction."
Anti-immigration rioters torched vehicles and looted stores in central Dublin on Thursday night after a knife attack near a primary school earlier in the afternoon.
Garda Síochána, the Irish police force, said in a press release the attacker injured an adult woman and three young children, one of whom sustained "serious injuries."
Irish police also said that an adult man in his 50s, who was injured at the scene, is a person of interest in the case. Police are "not looking for any other person at this time."
Irish public service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann reported that the man "is an Irish citizen who came to this country over 20 years ago."
Irish police said that the destruction could be blamed on far-right agitators who chanted anti-immigration slogans as they rioted, according to RTE.
"We have a complete lunatic hooligan faction driven by far-right ideology, and also then this disruptive tendency engaged in serious violence," Drew Harris, the commissioner of Garda Síochána, said on Thursday.
Ireland's Minister for Justice Helen McEntee also condemned the rioters as anti-immigration agitators.
"This is not about immigration, this is not about the young children who are in hospital this evening," she said. "These are criminals and thugs who have come into our city center and used a horrific attack on innocent children for their own gain and their own benefit."
The AP reported that "at least 100 people" joined the riot, with some setting off fireworks. Some rioters were armed with bricks, while others were armed with metal bars. Some stores were looted and had their windows crashed. Dublin suspended its tram and bus service in response to the riots.
More than 400 police officers were sent to respond to the scene. Videos from the scene show multiple vehicles set on fire. The BBC reported that these vehicles included a bus, a police car, and a tram. RTE reported that the crowd had dispersed by 11 p.m. local time.
"It was gratuitous thuggery, public transport was attacked as were garda vehicles, and some commercial premises were also damaged and attacked," said Patrick McMenamin, Garda Síochána's chief superintendent.
Police believe the knife attack to be a "standalone" incident. Irish police have said they ruled out any connection to terrorism, but they do not know the individual's motive.
Irish police did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.