BBC
A five-year-old girl and a woman in her 30s have been seriously injured and three other people hurt in a knife attack in Dublin city centre.
Another girl, six, and a five-year-old boy were also stabbed outside the children’s school shortly after 13:40 local time on Parnell Square East.
There were violent scenes near where the attack took place after crowds of protesters gathered in the area.
A man in his 40s is a person of interest, police said.
He is being treated for serious injuries. The police said they were not looking for any other people at this time and are following a definite line of inquiry.
‘Motive unclear’
On Thursday evening, officers used riot shields and batons after the crowd had gathered, while a number of police vehicles have been damaged.
Taoiseach (prime minister) Leo Varadkar said extra police resources had been deployed.
Garda (police) Commissioner Drew Harris blamed the violence on a “lunatic, hooligan faction” who engaged in violence as police tried to maintain the crime scene.
“We ask people to act responsibly, not to listen to misinformation and rumour that is circulating on social media,” he told reporters.
“We know what happened, but the motive for this is entirely unclear.”
‘Standalone attack’
In a press conference earlier, Supt Liam Geraghty said that the girl is receiving emergency care in hospital, while another girl, aged six, and a five-year-old boy were less seriously hurt.
He added that although it is early in the investigation, gardaí are confident that there is “no terror-related activity” and that it would…
