EIGHT PEOPLE WERE arrested as part of a garda operation aimed at policing planned protests in Dublin city this afternoon. 

Six of the arrests, five men and one woman, were in relation to alleged breaches of Covid-19 regulations while two, both male, were related to public order incidents. 

Gardai said this afternoon that, under Covid-19 regulations, there are restrictions on people organising events outdoors and there also restrictions on travelling outside the home without a reasonable excuse. 

A Facebook group called The Irish Inquiry, which has shared posts arguing for an end to Covid-19 restrictions, has shared footage of the scene on O’Connell Street where the arrests took place.

The person recording the live stream is seen speaking to a number of gardaí and saying that gardaí intervened when a number of people gathered together. 

Earlier today, the area around the GPO was closed off to the public as part of Easter Rising commemorations involving Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Defence Minister Simon Coveney and Dublin Lord Mayor Hazel Chu.