A woman has been left with a fractured skull after a police water cannon was turned on her during anti-lockdown riots in the Netherlands over the weekend.
A video of the incident shows Denisa Štastná taking the full force of the cannon whilst standing on a street in Eindhoven.
The jet, fired from a police van, knocked her clean off her feet and pushed her into the side of a building.
She reportedly had to have 15 stitches in her head after the incident.
Denisa, a Czech national, claims that she and her boyfriend were not involved in the rioting in protest against the country's stricter lockdown rules, but had turned out to film the events.
She told local news outlet Omroep Brabant: "We just stood there filming and walked away. They had no right to use the water cannon on us."
Her boyfriend also said that the pair were 'never out for violence' and confirmed that they are now looking into taking action against the police.
However, the Dutch prosecutors have said that simply being in the vicinity of the violence is tantamount to involvement.
A spokesperson for the prosecutors, Janine Kramer, said: "There was an emergency order and there were several announcements that you had to leave.
"If you do not leave then you are in principle punishable."
The Netherlands has recently introduced a curfew to stem the tide of coronavirus infections.
Despite infections declining in recent times, the move has been taken pre-emptively due to the threat posted by new variants of the virus.
Citizens are bound by law to remain in their homes between 9pm and 4:30am each day.
The new rules have not gone down well with a section of the population, and two days after the restrictions were introduced there were more than 240 arrests, according to local media and the police.
Rioters have allegedly started fires, looted businesses, and clashed with the police in several cities around the Netherlands.
In Urk, 50 miles north east of the capital city of Amsterdam, footage showed a coronavirus testing centre being invaded and set alight.
Speaking after the violence earlier in the week, Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus said that rioters would face the full force of the law.
He told reporters: "They won't get away with it."
Prime Minister Mark Rutte also said: "The riots have nothing to do with protesting or struggling for freedom,
"We must win the battle against the virus together, because that's the only way of getting back our freedom."
Featured Image Credit: Ongehoord NederlandTopics: Police, World News, Europe, Coronavirus, Covid-19