Taoiseach Enda Kenny has condemned this morning’s "cold-blooded murder" in Dublin.
Gareth Hutch, who was in his 30s, was shot a number of times in neck and head at the Avondale House flats complex on North Cumberland Street where he lived and was pronounced dead in hospital a short time later.
Speaking in the Dáil, Mr Kenny said he had met with Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan and said he was assured that resources are being made available to gardaí to do their jobs.
He also said that he intends to take up an invitation from Independent TD Maureen O’Sullivan to visit the inner city.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said the situation is "out of control" and described the community in inner city Dublin as being "under siege".
He said young people are being incentivised to get involved in drug dealing and "an inter-agency targeted response" is needed to tackle the problem.
He said community groups have said there has been a sustained erosion of the resources being provided in the area.
Mr Martin asked if the Taoiseach accepts that a multi-dimensional response is needed to deal with the issues in the north inner city.
Mr Kenny said: "Nobody disputes the fear that stalks the streets in the communities that you speak."
He said: "Obviously for communities there is the very visible checkpoints and that in itself causes consternation and fear and why wouldn't it? When people normally go about their business in a law abiding fashion."
"But this is a dispute between two families and its a vicious murderous dispute and I don't think that I can stop that but I think that from the Government point of view we can provide the resources and the wherewithal that the commissioner of the gardaí needs to have her forces deal with this in the way that they have to."
Mr Martin said he was disappointed to hear that and said no Government should admit defeat.
In response, Mr Kenny said he made the point that this is a feud between two families "that I cannot personally stop."
He added that the Government will "not lie down in the face of this murderous onslaught" and resources will be provided to tackle it.
Labour leader Brendan Howlin also said he was "taken aback by the Taoiseach saying that the Government cannot stop the feud."
He said that it is important that criminal gangs are taken off the streets.
Mr Kenny said he was speaking about himself. "I said I can't do anything about it. I meant myself as a citizen."
He added that he wanted to make sure that the Government does everything to make resources available to tackle the feud.
Murder victim 'feared for his life'
A Dublin councillor has said Mr Hutch was worried about security in his home.
Detectives believe his murder is the seventh in the feud between the Hutch and Kinahan gangs in the city.
Councillor Nial Ring said he met Mr Hutch yesterday.
He said Mr Hutch had been worried about access to his flat at the Avondale House complex because his son stayed with him a few nights a week and he was concerned something might happen while his son was staying.
Speaking on RTÉ's News At One, Mr Ring said the victim had an appointment with a welfare officer this morning to discuss accommodation.
"So he obviously was in fear of his life. The telephone number and the house number are both connected to the emergency response unit so the gardaí were obviously on alert that maybe he was a target," he added.
Mr Ring said Mr Hutch had wanted to stay in the area where he was living because he was from there and had friends and relatives nearby.
He called on the Taoiseach and Tánaiste and Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald to visit the area.
The re-opening of Fitzgibbon Street Garda Station needs to be addressed, he added.
"We really feel helpless and we need help," he said.
"I don't think there's another part of this city or part of this country where seven people could be shot dead within a short period of time that something wouldn't be done and we are calling on the Minister for Justice and the Taoiseach to get down here."
President Michael D Higgins has condemned the shooting, saying any murder is a great loss to any society or community.
Speaking on sidelines of the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, the President urged those involved "to cease this terrible loss of life".
Communities in the area have condemned the shooting and called for the Minister for Justice to take urgent action to end the "senseless cycle of violence".
A statement was issued this afternoon by the Inner City Organisations Network, the North East Inner City Community Policing Forum, Young People at Risk and the North Inner City Local Drugs Task Force.
It said they are demanding that the Tánaiste convenes a summit of local community and civil society leaders, all local public representatives and senior officials of statutory agencies, Government departments and the local authority to collectively put in place a sustained and long-term response to the root causes of the crisis.
The groups said they utterly condemn the shooting, which took place openly in the front square of a residential complex in the heart of their community.
It is a tragedy for the young man's family and friends, the statement added.
Last week around 200 people took part in a peaceful procession through north Dublin calling for peace in their area following the spate of gang-related violence.
Ms Fitzgerald has said this latest attack on law and order is unacceptable.
She added the unprecedented cycle of evil and cold-blooded violence must stop and the Government and gardaí stand with the community in the north inner city.
The Archbishop of Dublin, meanwhile, has said he does not understand what people think they are going to achieve with the current violence in Dublin.
Diarmuid Martin said that murders and acts of violence only lead to more.
"What you are doing is evil. What you are doing is despicable" AB Martin on @rtenews on latest gangland murder
— Archdiocese Dublin (@DublinDiocese) May 24, 2016
He said these acts are damaging the work of parents who are trying to help their children achieve more than they did and that children have a right to grow up in areas they are proud of.
The gang members think they can do what they want, he said. They need to be told what they are doing is "evil" and "despicable" and no one has respect for them, he added.
Archbishop Martin said that these people have two weapons in their armoury - their guns and our silence.
"We have to find ways to allow people who want to speak to come and speak and we have to stop this."
