Japan’s police began a campaign to cull bears after amended rules permitting them the use of rifles to kill the animals took effect on Thursday amid near-daily attacks.
Japan is reeling from an alarming spike in bear attacks as authorities scrambled to contain encounters with the animals invading homes, schools and even supermarkets.
Japanese riot police personnel trained to use firearms to tackle militants have been sent to the northern prefectures to work with the local law enforcement, according to reports.
Ceremonies to mark the beginning of the mission were held in Akita and Iwate prefectures in the north-eastern part of the country, which recorded the highest number of bear attacks.
Local officials told AFP that changes to Japan’s gun laws were needed as the handguns that are issued to the police are of limited use against bears because they are not powerful enough.
Two teams consisting of a commanding officer, a liaison to the local authorities, and two snipers will be sent to each of the prefectures.
The police chief at the Akita Prefectural Police headquarters described the newly formed squad as being on the frontline of the response to bears. The chief also asked the officers to make safeguarding people's way of life its top priority, according to NHK World Japan.
At least 13 people have been killed since April, marking the highest toll on record for fatal encounters with bears. This month, a man in his 50s was hospitalised after a bear attack in Fukushima prefecture, the latest in a growing string of encounters that have triggered panic in the country.
Local police said the man was slashed on the back of his head while walking in the town of Aizubange. He managed to escape into a nearby house and was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
In one recent tragedy, a worker at a hot spring resort in Kitakami, Iwate Prefecture, was killed in October after being mauled by a bear while cleaning an outdoor bath.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Japan has deployed its Self-Defence Forces (SDF) to northern Akita prefecture to help contain a surge in deadly bear attacks, as sightings in the region have jumped sixfold to over 8,000 this year.
Experts say the population of Asiatic black bears, listed globally as a vulnerable species, has tripled since 2012, helped by restrictions on hunting and warmer winters that extend foraging seasons.
About two-thirds of this year’s fatal bear attacks have been reported in Akita and Iwate prefectures, prompting Japan’s military to deploy troops to assist with setting and inspecting traps after urgent appeals from overstretched local authorities.
In Akita, residents say bears are increasingly straying into villages and near shops in sparsely populated rural areas, likely driven by dwindling natural food supplies ahead of the winter hibernation season.
Troops have been sent to Kazuno and nearby cities like Odate and Kitaakita to help set and inspect traps, while trained hunters carry out the culling.
Japan reinstated bear population control measures in 2024 after years of protection, but efforts are hampered by a shortage of hunters – now fewer than half the number in 1980 and mostly elderly.
In September, new legislation came into force allowing Japanese municipalities to call on hunters for “emergency shootings” to prevent bear attacks on civilians.
Despite limited resources, authorities culled over 9,000 bears in 2023-24 and more than 4,200 between April and September this year, including over 1,000 in Akita prefecture alone.
