Akita seeks SDF help to curb rising bear attacks nationwide

Akita Prefecture has asked the national government to deploy Japan’s Self-Defense Forces to help contain a surge in deadly bear attacks across the country, Governor Kenta Suzuki said, after a recent incident in which four people were mauled and one died in the village of Higashinaruse. Officials say the rise in attacks, concentrated in northern regions including Akita, Iwate and Hokkaido, has strained prefectural and municipal capabilities and prompted emergency national action.

The Environment Ministry reported double the previous record for fiscal-year fatalities, saying 12 people have died this fiscal year from April and that more than 100 people have been injured in related incidents. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara described the situation as one that "threatens the security and safety of the people" and ordered the implementation of emergency countermeasures. Governor Suzuki said on social media that he would visit the Defense Ministry in Tokyo to request Self-Defense Forces assistance, adding, "The lives of our citizens cannot be protected without the help of the Self-Defense Forces."

The government has expanded an inter-ministerial response to include the Defense...