A six-year-old boy is stable in hospital after being shot in the neck, police say.
Reports suggest he was wounded after men pushed open the door of a house in the Ballyfermot suburb of Dublin last night and shot into the hallway.
The Garda said the boy was rushed to hospital after the shooting in Croftwood Gardens and is in a non life-threatening condition.
A spokesman said: "The shooting occurred shortly after 10pm, a six-year-old boy received what is believed to be a gunshot wound to his neck. When gardai arrived on scene they administered first aid until the arrival of the ambulance.
"The injured boy was taken to Our Lady's Hospital Crumlin. His condition is described as stable and non life-threatening."
Gardai have sealed off the area while an investigation takes place.
The Irish Independent reported that the boy was standing in the hallway of the house when two men knocked on the front door. Finding it already ajar, they pushed it open and fired into the hallway.
"I heard a bang, I thought someone had smashed my window," a local woman told the paper.
"I came out and everyone was screaming. I stared throwing towels out to people who were helping him to stop the bleeding.
"I couldn't look, it was horrible. He looked so small and scared. His glasses were up at his forehead."