Trump Faces Mass Protests and Public Backlash During Highly Unpopular Visit to Ireland

Demonstrators hold placards featuring US President Donald Trump, in support of Palestinians during a protest in relation to the ceasefire in Gaza, in Dublin, Ireland, February 21, 2026. Donald Trump is set to arrive in Ireland on Saturday, but recent polling indicates that the majority of the public is unhappy about the visit, with a Sunday Independent and Ireland Thinks survey reporting that 69 percent do not support the US president.

“Thousands of us will march on Saturday because we refuse to normalise a man who has facilitated genocide,” Sean Radcliffe, an economics undergraduate student at Trinity College Dublin, told Al Jazeera. Radcliffe, a leader of the student body’s Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions campaign, added that Taoiseach Micheal Martin “should say it clearly, firmly, and publicly: the United States is facilitating genocide.”

Sean Corcoran, an environmental artist based on the Copper Coast in Waterford, spent five hours with three others carving “No Kings”—referencing anti-Trump protests under the same name in the US—along with “Gaza, Iran, Ice” into the sand of Dublin Bay Beach. “As an Irish artist and citizen, I believe it is important for me to use my voice to share my opinion about the Trump administration,” he told Al Jazeera. “Despite the diplomatic and security welcome that Mr Trump will receive when he lands in Ireland, the majority of Irish do not welcome him to Ireland.”

Trump is expected to meet with key figures in Ireland’s leadership, including Micheal Martin and antiwar President Catherine Connolly, who has previously stated that the US, along with France and England, is a nation Ireland “certainly cannot trust.” Large-scale protests are planned across Ireland, including at Dublin’s Garden of Remembrance, with many demonstrations focusing on Trump's backing of Israel’s actions in Palestine.

As one of the West's most vocal critics of Israel and the first European Union country to ban imports from illegal Israeli settlements, Ireland is deploying roughly 4,000 security personnel to safeguard the US leader. This security force includes approximately 1,000 US Secret Service agents and anti-drone weaponry. Following high-level political meetings and talks with the US ambassador that have led to the temporary closure of Phoenix Park—one of Europe's largest parks—Trump is expected to visit the Irish Open golf tournament in Doonbeg, where he owns a resort.

While Catherine Connolly holds a largely ceremonial role following her landslide victory in October 2025, she has noted she is “not afraid to stand against the consensus.” Although she stated during her campaign that she would meet the US president in her official capacity, she expressed doubt that Gaza or genocide would be on the discussion agenda. Johan Dornschneider-Elkink, a professor of Computational Political Science at University College Dublin, noted that the public expects a slightly more activist president who might speak out. However, the limitations of Connolly's position and the economic responsibilities of the taoiseach are expected to take precedence over the Palestine issue during official talks.

Stephanie Dornschneider-Elkink, associate professor of Political Science at University College Dublin, told Al Jazeera that the protests demonstrate how closely aligned Ireland is in spirit and policy with the Palestinian people. Nonetheless, she noted that economic dependence on the US limits how critical the nation can be. Johan added that the visit serves primarily as an outlet for Irish citizens to voice their positions on Palestine and the Trump administration, while maintaining the broader, long-standing relationship between Ireland and the US.

Leader of the Opposition Mary Lou McDonald of Sinn Fein told journalists that she hopes Connolly will address the ongoing facilitation of a genocide in Gaza and confirmed that her party will participate in Saturday's protests. Donnchadh O Laoghaire TD, the party’s spokesperson on foreign affairs, trade, and defence, also announced on Instagram his intention to join the demonstration at the Garden of Remembrance.

The demonstrations are organized by the Irish Neutrality League in coalition with the Irish Anti-War Movement and the social justice movement Tonn na Cle, with endorsements from Sinn Fein, the Social Democrats, Labour, People Before Profit-Solidarity, and the Green Party. Student groups, particularly at Trinity College Dublin—the first university globally to officially sever ties with Israel—have driven much of the pro-Palestine organization, with Sean Radcliffe emphasizing that there is no significant generational divide in Ireland regarding the conflict.