As Japan struggles to deal with rising numbers of bear attacks, it has become apparent that there aren’t enough people qualified to shoot the bears within the country, where people don’t typically possess guns.
On Thursday, 16 police officers in total were dispatched in special teams with rifles to cull the bears for the first time ever in Akita and Iwate prefectures, where the highest numbers of incidents have been seen this year.
So far, 13 bear-related deaths have been reported this fiscal year, which began in April. That’s more than double the previous record, set in fiscal 2023.
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