1. Japanese cabinet ministers have been given until mid-November to work out additional measures to deal with the growing threat posed by bears showing up in populated areas. Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara Minoru said the country has seen a major increase in fatal bear attacks this year and that they are occurring over wider areas and under different circumstances. He said bears are posing a growing threat to people’s safety.
2. A drill for capturing bears has been held at a camp of Japan’s Ground Self-Defense
Force in Akita Prefecture. The northern prefecture has confirmed three deaths and 53 injuries in bear attacks from April 1 to Wednesday. Prefectural and GSDF officials are discussing details of how to work together.
3. The Akita Prefectural Government in northern Japan has more than doubled the number of employees assigned to deal with bears. This comes after a spate of attacks on humans. The prefectural government assigned 26 more workers to the nature conservation section on Thursday. The section now has 46 workers. Dealing with bears is one of its duties.