‘Links between criminals and far-right groups’

The Irish Times notes this weekend:

Gardaí are becoming increasingly concerned about the participation of violent criminals in anti-immigration protests.

Units responsible for monitoring extremist groups have raised fears with Garda management that people with convictions for serious offences are associating themselves with local groups opposed to the accommodation of asylum seekers in their area.

Some of these figures have been arrested for serious offences in the past and, in some cases, are believed to have access to firearms, sources said.

There is particular concern that electoral candidates and people working to provide services for asylum seekers will be targeted in a serious attack in advance of the local and European elections on June 7th, according to two security sources.

Could one suggest that all this has been apparent for quite some time – certainly since the first months or so when this issue came to the fore. It seems very late in the day for the Gardaí to be recognising this now. That said better late than never. 

The dangers of this moment are very very real – in part due to the incredibly hands-off approach taken hitherto. It’s striking to see that only now are those involved in various acts coming before the legal system. And let’s not underplay the seriousness of what is taking place:

 

The level of violent online rhetoric has also increased markedly in the last three months, with some far-right accounts now blatantly calling for acts of violence against elected officials and asylum seekers.

A number of people arrested in recent months in connection with public order incidents relating to asylum seeker accommodation have criminal records, including arrests for assault, drug dealing, weapons possession, domestic violence and witness intimidation.

In response, gardaí have increased both online and physical monitoring of a handful of suspected right-wing extremists. The Garda Public Order Unit has also received new equipment and training and additional staff to prepare for serious disorder around asylum seeker accommodation locations.

In the most recent incident, on Tuesday night, a petrol bomb was thrown at a building in Tallaght, Dublin which had been earmarked for families seeking asylum. CCTV footage showed a man running away from the building as it caught fire.

And:

There were angry protests outside the premises later in the day, with some demonstrators threatening gardaí protecting the building, including in one instance threatening to set a woman garda on fire.

And:

Online, the rhetoric has “reached another level”, said one security source. In one public chat forum, controlled by a prominent far-right activist, there was discussion this week of the best way to target state institutions, with one participant suggesting an attack similar to the mass shooting carried out by Anders Breivik in Norway in 2011.

Another discussed using chemical weapons and employing heavy vehicles as “tanks”. There have been multiple posts on similar forums in recent months threatening to kill or seriously harm elected officials.

And this following seems troubling:

While no election candidate has been seriously harmed, a number of incidents of threats or intimidation of candidates have been reported to gardaí.

One person with an election candidate – their husband was, by any reasonable criteria, seriously harmed. Again so much seems to be downplayed. A bad situation has been allowed to worsen.