The Guardian corrects report on Dublin asylum hotel unrest after overstating duration of violence

The Guardian has corrected its coverage of violent protests outside a Dublin hotel housing asylum seekers, amending the headline and text of its October 22 report to reflect that the clashes marked a second night of unrest, not a third as originally stated.

The article, “Second night of unrest in Dublin as protesters target asylum hotel,” detailed hours of confrontation between demonstrators and members of An Garda Síochána, during which officers were pelted with stones, fireworks and bottles near the Citywest Hotel, west of the Irish capital. More than twenty people were arrested after police deployed public order units and advanced on crowds that had gathered in the wake of an alleged sexual assault in the area earlier that week.

In its initial publication, the Guardian erroneously described the violence as the third consecutive night of disorder. The correction, issued on October 23, clarified that while demonstrations had taken place on three nights, serious unrest — involving direct clashes, injuries and arrests — occurred on only two.

That distinction matters because the inflated timeline risked implying a sustained breakdown of public order and overstating the scale of Dublin’s unrest. In a country where tensions around immigration policy and asylum accommodation remain politically charged, the difference between two nights of violence and three can shift both perception and policy debate.

The Guardian has since updated its digital edition to confirm that the violence erupted on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, following a peaceful protest on Monday.