DOZENS OF PEOPLE gathered outside the Russian Embassy residence in Dublin today for the latest protest against the invasion of Ukraine.
The demonstration comes amid growing calls for Russia’s ambassador to Ireland Yury Filatov to be expelled from the country.
“Mr Filatov, where are you?” the crowd shouted.
The rally, which grew over the course of this afternoon, partially blocked the leafy Ailesbury road for a time.
Dozens more people attended a protest in support of Ukraine in Waterford City this morning, while another small demonstration was held in Cork City this afternoon.
Gardaí were present at the protest in Dublin, which heard from several speakers – with speeches and chants in both Ukrainian and English.
The protest heard repeated calls for Filatov to be expelled from the country.
“Mr Filatov, get out of Ireland,” was chanted during the rally.
A range of speakers addressed the rally, promising that Ukrainians would fight on until the death.
Some speakers spoke of friends and family at home preparing to fight to defend their country.
Several Irish ministers have today defended the decision not to expel Filatov, pointing to the importance of having a communication channel with Moscow amid the uncertainty of the situation in Ukraine.
However, opposition parties in Ireland have been joined by some TDs, senators and MEPs from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in recent days in demanding the exit of the Russian ambassador.
Last night, nearly 40 Fianna Fáil TDs, senators and MEPs signed a petition calling on Filatov to be ejected from Ireland. The list included TDs Jim O’Callaghan and Dara Calleary, as well as senators Lisa Chambers and Fiona O’Loughlin.
The crowd in Dublin was told that more protests were planned in the days to come.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say