Fuel tankers regain access to Irish oil refinery

Fuel trucks have regained access to an oil refinery in the Republic of Ireland that had been subjected to a days-long blockade.

Earlier on Saturday, protesters at Whitegate Refinery in County Cork were pushed back by gardaí (Irish police) using pepper spray, in an operation supported by the Irish Defence Forces.

Gardaí were brought in to move large tractors that had been blocking the entrance and fuel tankers were once again able to access the site.

Hundreds of petrol stations in the country have run out of fuel as the protests - involving slow-moving convoys made up of vehicles including tractors - continue for a fifth day.

Blockades at fuel depots in counties Limerick and Galway are continuing.

Footage posted by gardaí on Saturday afternoon showed them escorting oil tankers leaving Whitegate after they restored access to the refinery.

Meetings between government ministers and representatives of farmers and hauliers to finalise a new government funding package took place on Saturday.

The package will include a temporary fuel support scheme aimed at the haulage, agri-business and contractor sectors.

On Saturday evening Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly said a number of arrests were made during the operation at Whitegate.

He added that blockades are illegal and "not a legitimate form of protest".

"We gave these blockaders fair warning that we were moving to an enforcement phase and they chose to ignore that and continue to hold the country to ransom."

Kelly also said gardaí are aware that there has been intimidation of fuel tanker drivers.

"Offences such as threats to kill or cause serious harm carry sentences of up to 10 years," he said.

"My message is clear - blockaders must immediately cease blockades of critical infrastructure and road networks or face the full rigours of the law."

Fuels for Ireland, which represents companies that import, distribute, and sell fuel, said warned two-thirds of petrol stations in Ireland would be out of stock by the end of Saturday if the blockades at the fuel-storage facilities continued.

The blockade of parts of Dublin city centre is continuing, with O'Connell Street and South Quay closed to traffic.

Other disruption includes:

• A blockade on the M50, with parts of the road closed
• The M7 at Portlaoise is blocked in both directions
• On the M8, at Cashel south, there is a blockage northbound
• Road blocks are reported in Monaghan town and on the N2 bypass, on the M18/N18 in County Clare, and the M20/N20, between Patrickswell and Raheen in County Limerick

The harbour master at Rosslare Europort has told Irish broadcaster RTÉ that they may have to turn away ferries due to a road blockade outside the facility.

Tom Curran said the port will have reached capacity by Sunday afternoon with freight stuck and unable to move.

Protesters have set up a blockade at the nearby village of Kilrane about a mile from the port.

A spokesperson for Iarnród Éireann (Irish Rail) said the situation could come to a head late on Sunday night or early on Monday morning

Public transport has also been affected, with some services suspended and major disruption in Dublin.

Bus Éireann said it would try to serve Dublin Airport passengers where possible, while people travelling to Shannon and Dublin Airports are advised to allow extra time.

An Garda Síochána, has declared an "exceptional event" in response to the fuel protests, allowing it to double the number of officers available to work.

The National Emergency Coordination Group (NECG), which brings together government departments and state agencies to coordinate emergency response, said fuel supplies for emergency response vehicles, including the ambulance service and fire service, are under "increasing pressure".

Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said the blockades meant the country was "on the precipice of turning oil away from the country" during a global oil supply crisis.

Speaking in Dublin on Saturday, Mary Lou McDonald the leader of Sinn Féin, said the Irish Government had allowed a "difficult situation" to escalate and urged it to engage with protesters to negotiate an end to the blockades.

The conflict in the Middle East has caused rapid price rises for both petrol and diesel.

Some 20% of the world's oil trade, the raw ingredient for producing both petrol and diesel, has been halted by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Diesel in the Republic of Ireland has risen from about €1.70 (£1.48) a litre to €2.17 (£1.89) on many forecourts in recent weeks and petrol is now up to 25 cents more per litre at many pumps.

The protests started on Tuesday morning.