The High Court has ruled that restoration and building work on Moore Street must stop, pending a review of the buildings as a national monument.

Numbers 14 to 17 Moore Street had earlier been designated a National Monument, but relatives of those who fought in the 1916 Rising wanted additional buildings preserved.

Judge Max Barrett said he was restraining the Minister for Heritage from carrying out works on numbers 13 to 19.

He also said the High Court was satisfied that surrounding areas were of national importance.

The matter will return to the High Court in April, after the Minister has a chance to review the judgement.

James Connolly Heron, a grandson of James Connolly, said it was a red-letter day for the decade-long campaign.

He said: "Today shows that on each and every occasion that we have met with government officials and various ministers, we have been correct in asserting that what's at stake here is the future birthplace of the nation.

"The Moore Street area is the last extant 1916 battlefield, it must be preserved and protected at all costs."