Sponge grenade

[1] Improper use of sponge grenades can cause broken bones, head wounds, or permanent damage to eyes.

[4] The Hong Kong Police Force has deployed sponge grenades as a riot control tool on several occasions in July 2019 during the anti-extradition protests.

[5] During the fourth week of the 2022 Wellington protests against COVID-19 pandemic safety measures, the New Zealand Police deployed sponge grenades as one of the many tools used in their effort to clear the parliamentary grounds of rioters.

[6] Sponge grenades were used by some police departments during the George Floyd protests in the summer of 2020 and were cited as being one of the most common types of less-lethal rounds employed.

[8][9] Police shot journalist Linda Tirado in the face with a sponge grenade, permanently blinding her in one eye; [10] she entered hospice care four years later due to the traumatic brain injury.