Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has described a threat on her life as "very shocking and very disturbing".

Ms McDonald earlier said she had reported receiving what she called the "blatant and blunt" death threat online to gardaí.

In a video posted on TikTok, a man from Dublin wearing a balaclava threatened to shoot Ms McDonald, and said that Garda Commissioner Drew Harris will also be shot.

The video remained live on the man's TikTok account for more than 12 hours and received tens of thousands of views. The specific video is no longer visible and the account has been removed from the platform.

A spokesperson for TikTok has said that the site's moderation process is initially done through utilising artificial intelligence, followed then by human moderation. If videos get through that process, they are published and can be removed after if flagged by users.

TikTok this evening confirmed that it removed the video in question from the platform. The video is also still visible on social media site X.

Speaking on RTÉ's Six One News, Ms McDonald said the threatening video was "a real escalation of something that has been happening for about a year".

A video posted to social media showed the man making threats to Mary Lou McDonald and the Garda Commissioner

She said: "I have been subjected to an orchestrated and vicious campaign that has been misogynistic and sexist.

"That has been racist in some cases and that has been deliberately intent on damaging me and my standing particularly amongst those in working class communities that I represent".

The Sinn Féin leader said has had protestors at her house, adding: "I take my fair share of criticism and I take it in good stead."

However, she said "an open threat to my life" is matter of the "upmost seriousness".

"I found it very shocking and very disturbing," she said, "gardai are now investigating the matter."

In a statement, An Garda Síochána said it is "aware of footage posted to social media on Tuesday, 16 July 2024. An Garda Síochána is investigating this matter".

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The threat was made while Ms McDonald was hosting a discussion on the need for zero tolerance when it comes to violence against women.

Posting on X, the Dublin Central TD said the individual told her he would shoot her dead.

"This threat was made to take my life, it was as blatant and blunt as that," Ms McDonald said earlier on RTÉ's News At One.

Ms McDonald said she was "all for freedom of expression" and she does not believe in censorship, but "she does not accept and will not accept a threat against my life or anybody else's".

"It is utterly unacceptable, and it is sinister, and I have reported the matter to An Garda Síochána and I expect them to deal with it appropriately," Ms McDonald said.

She added: "There has been a trend for the last year or more, a very organised section of people online, to have a run at Sinn Féin and at me in particular.

"I think the objective of the exercise has been to cast doubt or to alienate or disrupt the relationship between myself and Sinn Féin and those that would support us, rely on us to represent them and represent them well.

"It’s been pretty relentless. If you visit any of my social media platforms you would see that. But last night that escalated to a threat to take my life and I’m shocked by it, to be honest," the Sinn Féin leader said.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee condemned the threat.

In a post on X, she said: "Threats of any nature should never be tolerated in our democracy. It is right and proper she has reported this to An Garda Síochána, who will deal with it appropriately."