Ireland has never been so dangerous for women & girls...

WE have an alarming statistic in Ireland - an increasing number of women will be killed by someone they know.

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But it is not just a wife or lover having their life taken by their current or ex-male partner. We are seeing more and more of mothers being killed by their children.

Gardai have had to deal with several such cases nationwide over the past few years, with mental health issues often being cited as the cause for the violent actions of those involved.

A number of fathers too have also been killed by a son, either stabbed or shot in a moment of madness.

The harsh truth is we have reached the stage that, while Ireland is deemed to be one of the safest countries in the world from a low-crime data point of view, the biggest risk to the safety of women here is from someone they know, either a husband, ex husband, former partner or family member.

The chances of them being killed by a complete stranger are slim and in almost all of those cases, the suspect is captured and prosecuted.