British police officers from the Football Policing Unit have arrived in Dublin to help identify English football hooligans who might attempt to enter the State, in defiance of travel bans, to cause trouble around the Republic of Ireland v England match this weekend.
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris confirmed the English officers would act as observers or spotters while in the city. They have shared intelligence with gardaí, including about the most notorious troublemakers likely to attempt to come to Dublin. The British officers are to be deployed in Garda control rooms, helping to monitor CCTV footage from across Dublin, and could also work on the streets with Garda Public Order Units.
However, Mr Harris said they will not have an active role in frontline policing while in Ireland.
“They have no policing powers,” he said of the English police officers coming to Dublin. “They’re there to observe, to assist us, and if we have to deal with disorder, they may be able to assist us in terms of (identifying) individuals, particularly if they have been banned from international travel.
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“There is a scheme in England where some fans are banned from international football travel. And obviously travelling to Dublin, even though we have the Common Travel Area, still would be a breach of those sorts of bans.”
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Though only 3,000 tickets for the Nations League game at the Aviva Stadium have been assigned to England fans, it is expected thousands more supporters will travel to Dublin to socialise and savour the atmosphere.
The Garda has established Operation Dearóil for the weekend policing operation, which also involves heightened security for the first visit to Dublin by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The operation has been declared an “extraordinary event” by Garda Headquarters, meaning leave has been cancelled to bolster resources.
The operation will involve thousands of gardaí, including over 300 Public Order Unit members on standby, and will focus on maintaining order at the match and in the city centre in the hours before and after the fixture when Ireland and England fans will mix on the streets.
The presence of the English officers in Ireland mirrors the recent deployment of Garda members overseas, including at the Paris Olympics, to aid Irish people who may get into difficulty while abroad and to assist French police.
The Nations League clash takes place at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday evening. The last time the sides met at the stadium was in 2015. The game ended in a 0-0 draw and without major incident off the pitch. The previous meeting in Dublin, a 1995 friendly fixture at the then Lansdowne Road, had to be abandoned when English hooligans caused disorder.
There was a significant far-right element to those disturbances and the far-right has been especially active in Britain in recent months, including orchestrating riots following a stabbing incident in Southport last month. However, Mr Harris said there was no evidence so far of any such groups targeting Saturday’s game with a view to causing trouble.
“We’re live to all the various public order threats that may arise,” Mr Harris said when asked about British football hooligans possibly coming to Dublin and any influence the far-right may have in that.
The fact the game had been declared an “extraordinary event” in policing terms – which involves annual leave being cancelled to bolster resources – meant a “very substantial” Garda operation could be mounted around the game, he said.
“This (operation) would be both for the arrival of (England) fans and the for the maintenance of order in the city centre and at the football match,” he told reporters during a visit to Waterford.
“At the Aviva Stadium itself, the vast majority of fans are going to be Ireland fans. And part of our operation is to make sure all fans can travel backwards and forwards to the match in safety and fans in the ground can watch it in safety free from the threat of public disorder or attack.”
Garda headquarters said in the 24 hour period of Saturday, September 7th, up to 1,100 gardaí of all ranks will be on duty in Dublin city, around the Aviva Stadium, Dublin Airport and any other associated areas.
“Uniformed gardaí will be assisted by specialist units such as National Public Order Units, Air Support Unit, Mounted Unit, Armed Support Unit and more,” it said in a statement.
The commissioner said English police had a specific operation for “gathering intelligence around football hooliganism” and the Garda had been “working very closely with them” in recent months.
“So we’re prepared for all the threats that might arise,” he said.
Meanwhile, the English Football Association has issued travel advice to fans, saying: “Drinking is not allowed in the streets or public spaces in Ireland. This will be enforced by local police ... Any supporters who are visibly drunk may be refused entry into the stadium by local authorities.”
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