A protest was held in Dublin city after a security firm was apparently used to remove activists from an empty property.
Around ten people were occupying the building on Prussia Street, saying they wanted to highlight the issue of empty housing and to provide shelter for homeless people.
In a statement, gardaí said officers attended the scene where a property owner was securing his premises in compliance with a court order.
Officers from Bridewell Station facilitated access to the owner to "remove personal items".
Gardaí said after a number of people gathered outside the house, they closed the street "on public safety grounds".
No arrests were made during the incident, but inquiries are continuing, gardaí added.
One man who had been occupying the house said a group of men wearing balaclavas forcibly removed them from the property at around 6.30am this morning.
The spokesperson, who did not wish to be identified, said there had been around ten to 15 activists sleeping in the building over the past two months.
It had also been used by "four or five" homeless people. One of the protesters went to hospital with a head injury, he said.
The housing activists, who are supported by the group Community Action Tenants Union (CATU), continued to protest outside.
However, most gardaí had left around lunchtime. Later on, around 100 people turned up to protest outside the property.
