An Afghan man fears for the safety of his family, after his and two young adult brothers and his 13-year-old son, were apparently subjected to a brutal assault near Marlay Park in Dublin.
According to the 32-year-old, who relocated to Ireland six years ago, a gang of five men attacked the three boys shortly after a family day out in the Rathfarnham park on Thursday evening.
He claims his brothers were cycling home along with the man's teenage son, when the incident took place.
They were travelling along Nutgrove Way, when a car carrying the five alleged attackers, slowed down and began verbally abusing them.
Referring to the attack which ensued, he said:
"They rolled down the window and started shouting the F-word many times, swearing a lot and saying, ‘Why are you here? Go back to your country.'"
"The men drove the car across in front of them, blocked them in. They didn’t check their pockets for money or take their bikes – they went straight to punch them. Both my brothers fell unconscious after they were punched in the face."
"At the end of it, they punched my son in the face and head. Everything happened in four to five minutes."
He also revealed how some of the attackers used 'a black metal object' to beat his family members and continued threatening them after returning to their vehicle.
"They stuck up their finger saying, ‘We’ll see you again. Go back to your own country. This is a warning, next time we’ll kill you.’ They used the F-word about being Muslim too."
The Afghan native, who has been an Irish citizen since 2013, added that his family have not encountered any trouble in the area prior to this incident.
"This is my home. I can’t believe this attack has happened. Why would people want to hurt my son like this? Nothing has ever happened like this,” he said. “From what the men said, I can see it’s racism."
His brothers were transferred to St James's Hospital emergency department to receive treatment for their injuries while his son is said to be recovering well after suffering some bruises and cuts.
Gardai are investigating the alleged attack.
