Protests erupted in Dublin, Ireland, following the alleged sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl at a hotel in the city. As the demonstrations, with around 2,000 protesters, turned violent outside the Citywest Hotel, which houses asylum seekers, a police helicopter was targeted with laser beams. A police van was set on fire, and officers were attacked with lasers and fireworks. The Gardai (Irish police) also reported that some individuals on the streets were seen carrying garden forks.

The protest was so extreme that the police deployed a water cannon for the first time in the country, according to Sky News.

The police have arrested the accused, who is reportedly African. Sky News reported that an Arabic translator was called in when the 26-year-old accused was produced before the court.

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