Elon Musk says Ireland's Taoiseach Leo Varadkar 'hates Irish people'

Tech billionaire Elon Musk says that Ireland's Taoiseach Leo Varadkar "hates the Irish people." 

Musk made the comments on his own social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. 

It came in response to a post where one user claimed the Irish government "want all of your freedoms," after Varadkar announced new legislation to combat hate speech.

Musk's comments on X were followed by dozens of anti-Varadkar posts, many of which were racist in tone. 

On Thursday afternoon a stabbing incident in Dublin saw three children and an adult injured near a school, which some people blamed on the government's immigration policy.

Police say right-wing agitators were behind violent protests which followed the stabbing,  bringing angry mobs onto the streets of the city centre, burning vehicles and smashing windows amid a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment. 

Politicians on all sides have condemned Thursday night's rioting.