Gardaí are monitoring the growth of several far-right groups which are using increasingly militant-style tactics as part of their anti-immigrant agenda, the Irish Daily Mail has learned.
A new group of masked far-right men was unveiled on Thursday by Justin Barrett, former leader of the National Party, who has since split from the organisation and is now leading a new group called Clann Éireann.
Speaking at the Michael Collins ambush site at Béal na Bláth in west Cork, Mr. Barrett, dressed in a black military-style cap and black coat, said he was unveiling a new "protection unit" of his party called An Sciath Náisiúnta, or the "SN" as he described it.
Behind Mr. Barrett, a group of masked men all dressed in black held tricolours as well as the party’s logo.
During his speech, which aired on YouTube on Thursday night, Mr. Barrett said the SN is "not here to create violence," but he "will protect himself from the foreign invader."
Speaking later about the use of violence, Mr. Barrett added: "We in the SN are here for the determined will to see that Ireland’s voice will be heard no matter who tries to silence us.
"We will act within the law. We will act as peaceful as we can, but we will also be ready to protect ourselves and defend ourselves with as much violence as is necessary.
"Make no mistake, Ireland is standing up," he said.
Security sources have downplayed the significance of the group and likened Mr. Barrett to "playing toy soldiers."
But there are still concrete fears about the potential militarisation of the far right.
The SN has claimed that its "units" had already been active in certain parts of the country to hand out literature and to ‘protect’ the streets.
On its Telegram channel, it showed men placing stickers in areas stating: "You are now entering Nationalist Territory!"
Meanwhile, in a totally separate organisation, far-right organisers in south Dublin are planning to patrol neighbourhoods by setting up their own security company, the Mail has learned.
It has led to concerns within An Garda Síochána, with members of the force believing that the plans could result in "vigilantes on the streets," numerous sources told the Mail.
While many in the area have disregarded the plans of anti-immigrant organiser Fergus Power, there are fears within An Garda Síochána that the establishment of such a body would create a "headache" for officers in the south Dublin areas of Ballybrack, Shankill, and Loughlinstown.
Mr. Power, who unsuccessfully ran in the latest local elections, said plans for a dedicated private security team, made up of volunteers, are already progressing.
Security sources with knowledge of local policing in the area have told the Mail that the establishment of this sort of group would make it logistically difficult for gardaí to avoid "bumping heads" with them.
In a statement, Mr. Power said: "We plan to set up a registered security company to perform patrols of estates in Ballybrack/ Loughlinstown by volunteers made up of local men and women.
"None of us know what the future holds so we feel that by being proactive now and putting these security measures in place it is the best thing for our children and the people of our village going forward.
"We are hoping this might have a positive knock-on effect throughout other Dublin and nationwide Irish communities as we have a duty of care to protect the most vulnerable in our society.
"I have a name for our company and I’ll release it once we have it registered and everything is finalised. This project will be community-based and funded through prize draws and raffles etc," Mr. Power said.
The company, which is to be registered shortly, will make volunteers get a PSA (private security) licence before they can legally go out on the streets. Mr. Power also said he intends to get a van to transport these volunteers around the area.
Ballybrack Councillor Hugh Lewis described the plans as a "farce" and said the people of the community "will not tolerate such nonsense."
Last year, Mr. Lewis’s family home was the target of an attack believed to have been perpetrated by far-right agitators in the area. There is no suggestion that Mr. Power was part of this incident. In that attack, a brick was thrown through the window of his family home, where only his elderly father was staying at the time.
A note attached to the brick read: "Hugh. Stop supporting f***ing refugees or you’ll have to move out. This is your last warning."
Speaking about the plans to set up a patrol, Mr. Lewis said: "The idea that a self-appointed group of hard men will travel around Ballybrack in a van… is a farce.
"I suggest to anyone giving this consideration, to instead get involved in the many of the positive community projects we have in the area that bring actual value to people’s lives.
"The people of Ballybrack will not tolerate such nonsense. This includes those delusional few that are clearly still daydreaming about being a member of the A‑Team some 40 years later."
Meanwhile, Councillor Jim Gildea said he was "horrified" at the prospect of these men patrolling the community. He told the Mail: "It would be an absolute disaster and a disgrace if it were to happen. I’d go as far as to say it’s terrifying."
Security sources in the area said they believe that the company will be launched in the coming weeks and said there are concerns about the message it will send out.
There are worries that this might spur on a lot of people by them thinking they have more power than they actually do.
"If they operate something similar to a neighbourhood watch group, then the gardaí will have no problem. If they see something while out on their walks they can call the guards and let them know and they will respond.
"But there are problems that I can see straight away. If they detain someone they think has done something wrong, then that’s false imprisonment and most likely assault."
Anti-immigrant groups continue to operate across the country with gardaí in each division aware of each group’s key players.
There are just over 2,500 homeless male asylum seekers in Ireland, according to the latest figures from the Department of Integration. It comes as the number of asylum seekers who have arrived in Ireland so far this year is set to surpass the total number of arrivals for 2023.
More than 13,100 asylum seekers have sought protection in Ireland to date in 2024; the total number of arrivals across the whole of last year was 13,277.
The Mail has contacted An Garda Síochána for official comment.
*This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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