A six-year-old girl of Indian descent was violently attacked outside her residence in Waterford, Ireland, in what is being described as a racially motivated assault. The attackers, a group of boys, allegedly targeted her with physical violence and hurled racist insults, including “Go back to India.” The assault included blows to her private parts, marking what is believed to be the first such racially charged incident involving an Indian child in Ireland. The incident occurred on the evening of August 4, while the young girl was playing with friends near her home. According to her mother, an eight-year-old girl and several boys aged between 12 and 14 were involved in the attack. The mother, who had briefly gone indoors to feed her 10-month-old son, said she was only away for a moment.

"I told her I’d be right back after feeding the baby," she shared with The Irish Mirror. But within minutes, her daughter returned, visibly shaken and in tears. "She was terrified, crying uncontrollably, unable to even speak," the mother said. One of the girl's friends later recounted that the older boys had struck the child in her private area with a bicycle and punched her in the face. “She said five of them hit her in the face. One boy pushed the bicycle wheel onto her private parts—it hurt a lot. They were shouting the F-word and calling her a ‘Dirty Indian,’ telling her to ‘go back to India,’” the mother said. The girl was also reportedly punched in the neck and had her hair twisted violently.

The mother, a nurse who has lived in Ireland for eight years and recently became a citizen, said her daughter is now too afraid to play outside. “We don’t feel safe anymore—not even in front of our own house. She’s scared to go outside and play,” she said. Visibly emotional, she added, “I feel heartbroken. I couldn’t protect her. I never imagined something like this would happen. I believed she’d be safe here.”

The incident was reported to the Gardaí (Irish police), but the mother stressed that she doesn’t want the children punished—only that they receive proper counselling and guidance. “I’m not looking for revenge. I want them to be helped, not harmed. We came to this country as professionals to help fill labour shortages—we have all the qualifications,” she said.

This incident comes amid growing concerns about racially motivated violence against Indians in Ireland. Just last month, a 40-year-old Indian man was publicly beaten and stripped by a group of teenagers in Tallaght, a suburb of Dublin. Since July 19, at least three such assaults targeting people of Indian origin have been reported in Dublin, prompting alarm in the Indian community.