Protest camp moved from Central Bank before annual St Patrick's Day parade
Police have cleared an Occupy camp outside Ireland's Central Bank in an operation in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Up to 100 gardaí along with officials from Dublin Corporation dismantled the Occupy Camp in Dame Street at around 3.30am. Only 15 protesters were on the site at the time when it was cleared.
The Occupy camp was set up last October in solidarity with the campaigners who had occupied Wall Street in New York and the area outside St Paul's Cathedral in London.
Protesters plan to hold a demonstration at the Central Bank later on Thursday and said the removal of the camp did not mean the end of the Occupy movement.
Just after 7am the streets were reopened around the Central Bank and protesters were allowed to return to the site.
Ireland's minister for tourism, Leo Varadkar, said it was regrettable that those involved in the protest would not consider relocating for a few days during the St Patrick's Day festival celebrations.
Gardaí and a number of Irish celebrities including the former Leeds United player Johnny Giles have appealed to Occupy to suspend their camp protest in order to facilitate the annual St Patrick's Day parade which passes by the Central Bank en route to O'Connell Street.
Giles is this year's honorary marshal who will lead the St Patrick's Day procession through the Irish capital.