At least 28 people have been arrested and several people injured after gardai turned two water cannons on anti-globalisation protesters who attempted to break through a security cordon on the Navan Road close to the Phoenix Park this evening.
Within 40 minutes of the protest beginning hundreds of gardai on foot, members of the riot squad and mounted gardai pushed the protesters almost a mile away from the scene of the original disturbances - in the direction of the city centre. By 11 p.m. the remenants of the march had been pushed as far as Dorset St, close to the city centre.
There have been a number of injuries and at least one female garda has been brought to the James Connolly Memorial Hospital suffering from head wounds. Her condition is not described as serious and she is due to be released shortly.
The mood turned ugly and scuffles broke out after 8.30 p.m. and riot police started forcing the more than 2,000 people away from the Park with batons drawn.
The Indymedia website has reported that the Wombles, who had indicated their intention to cause trouble at today's protests, "appeared at front line" at 8.35 p.m.
The trouble flared when a crowd waving a banner which read "No borders, no nations, against a Europe of capital" attempted to break through a cordon of plain-clothes gardai near the Phoenix Park's Ashtown Gate.
The plain-clothes gardai successfully prevented the group pushing through before the cordon before moving back behind a line of riot police.
Protesters - some of whom were wearing balaclavas - were reported to have thrown cans and sticks at riot police.
A spokesman for Another Europe is PossibleRory Hearne told ireland.comhowever that there was no provocation from the protesters and pointed out that the majority of today's protests were peaceful.
He blamed garda intimidation and heavy-handedness for tonight's confrontation.
The protesters had taken a circuitous route to the site of the main celebrations to mark the accession of ten new states to the EU after they assembled at 6 p.m.at the GPO on O'Connell St.
The heads-of-state have now left Farmleigh House, approximately four mile from the scene of tonight's disturbances.
Gardai use water cannon to subdue protesters gathered outside Phoenix Park
Reporters being ferried from Farmleigh to the media centre in Dublin Castle this evening were taken an alternate route in order to avoid the violent scenes.
Earlier today up to a thousand people had gathered at Dublin's Heuston Station where a concert organised by Another Europe is Possibletook place.
A similar number of
Reclaim the Streetsprotesters gathered in St Stephen's Green and marched through the city on their way to the GPO on O'Connell St.
The garda presence was said to be low-key and the atmosphere was widely regarded as good-natured.
The Heuston Station protest was addressed by activist Rory Hearne who congratulated the crowd "for facing down the intimidation" of the security operation. "We are here in our thousands and we have won today," he said.
Although there was a heavy garda presence, the protest has caused little disruption and there were no reports of trouble.
This morning, group of less than 150 protestors staged the first May Day protest in Dublin when they marched in glorious sunshine from the Civic Offices down the north Quays and through the city centre.
The protest stopped briefly on O'Connnell Bridge where protesters dropped a dozen carnations in the Liffey to mark the deaths of 12 non-EU citizens who died in recent times attempting to enter the Republic.
The group spoke against the creation of a Fortress Europe and called for a relaxation of immigration policies within the EU.
The Minister for Justice Mr McDowell came in for particular criticism for his immigration policies and the decision to hold a "racist" citizenship referendum in June.