The Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris, said there is a policing plan to deal with protests and obstructions at migrant centers but the Gardai would not fall into the trap of overreacting.
Mr Harris said they must be careful not to act on the far right and stir up anger in the communities where migrants seek international protection.
Justice Secretary Simon Harris announced that the actions in Old Trafford in Dublin over the weekend were “abhorrent” and said that a small number of people had stolen the Irish flag, reports RTE.
A blockade has since been lifted in Clare, but a blockade has now been put in place in Old Trafford in Dublin, where the government plans to shelter migrants seeking international protection.
A small group of masked men stopped taxis and buses entering the Airways industrial area over the weekend.
Secretary Harris called the action incomprehensible, shameful and unacceptable.
He said that the Irish flag is being hijacked by a small group of people who do not speak for that country.
The Commissioner of the Garda Síochána said that the situation in Clare had been successfully managed and that Gardaí were now present in Seantrave, but he stressed that the Gardai were not falling into a classic far-right trap, reports RTE.
Mr Harris said there were two parts to the playbook on the right: reacting to fear on the ground, inciting a crowd and then attracting an overreaction from the Gardaí.
He said there was a long-term policing strategy involving local gardaí and national special forces.
Lough Local Garda worked with communities, and the Special Detective Unit monitored known and persistent far-right activists online and in person.
So far eleven people have been arrested, two have been charged and are on trial.
Meanwhile, the number of applicants for international protection arriving in Ireland has increased compared to the previous month, reports RTE.
Figures from the Department of Justice show that 609 people have applied for international protection here so far this month.
In April there were 633 new applicants for the whole month.
That was the lowest monthly figure since January 2022, a month in which 392 people applied for international protection here.
It also fell by more than half from a peak of 1,306 in January 2023.
The number of asylum seekers also increased week after week last May from 181 in the first week to 199 in the second week and reached 229 last week.
Based on these numbers, it is likely that over 800 people will apply for international protection in May, which is closer to the numbers we saw in February (833) and March (858) this year, but still far monthly below last year’s figure. 1,138 on average, reports RTE.
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