German police fire water cannons at crowds in Berlin protesting coronavirus restrictions

BERLIN (AP) — German police fired water cannons at demonstrators protesting coronavirus restrictions after saying the crowd ignored warnings to wear masks and to keep their distance from one another. As water from the cannons rained down on protesters outside Berlin’s landmark Brandenburg Gate on Wednesday, police in riot gear moved through the crowd carrying away some protesters. The protests came as German lawmakers debated a bill that would provide legal underpinning for the government to issue social distancing rules, require masks in public and to close stores and other venues. The bill easily passed both the lower and upper houses of Germany’s parliament and was being fast-tracked to the county’s president for his signature later Wednesday.