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At the Whitegate refinery in southern Ireland—ground zero of recent blockades and police crackdowns—anger is boiling over.

We travelled to the nearby town of Cork, where protests emerged over the weekend. We spoke with local residents to hear their thoughts on the fuel protests that have spread across the country—particularly in Cork and at the nearby Whitegate refinery, where people blocked roads to stop fuel trucks from entering and leaving the site.

When speaking with ordinary citizens, many expressed strong support for the protests, saying fuel costs have become unbearable.

For many, the recent tax cuts are simply not enough. “We are running to a standstill. We can’t do it forever,” one man said, pointing out that only “$0.09 went under pumps last night.”

Across the country, farmers, truckers, and workers have mobilized, blocking roads and key fuel infrastructure. While the government introduced temporary tax relief, critics say it’s merely cosmetic. “The government could afford to at least half the tax… in order to save the businesses of all these people,” another resident argued.

Some voices go even further. “It’s tyrants… that are destroying the Irish people in this country,” one protest supporter said bluntly.

But the movement is facing pushback—not just from police, but from the political class. Protesters have been labeled “far-right,” a claim many strongly reject. “If you’re not with the narrative of the government, they call you far right… We are not far right,” one man insisted, adding, “we might be right, but we are not far-right.”

On the ground, opinions vary about tactics. Some fully support the blockades: “100%, 100%,” said one man when asked if targeting refineries was justified. Others disagree with the methods but still support the cause: “I don’t think it was right that they blocked the road… but we have a right to protest.”

Meanwhile, frustration over rising costs is widespread. “It’s costing me nearly £200 a week just to put fuel in the van… just to go to work,” one self-employed worker said. Another added: “The country’s gotten very expensive… everything is very expensive.”

With growing anger, some warn this is only the beginning. “We’re going to stand our ground… there’s a housing crisis, a fuel crisis,” said one protester.

As tensions rise, one message is clear from the streets of Ireland: “There’s power in numbers… it needs to change in every country.”