Japan Bear Attacks Surge; Death Toll Possibly Nine

Northern Japan, including Hokkaido and prefectures such as Akita, Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima, Toyama and Morioka, is seeing a sharp surge in bear attacks and sightings, with multiple recent incidents injuring several people and prompting stepped-up patrols and captures. Official counts vary: Japan’s environment ministry reports seven fatal attacks since April, while other outlets and experts put the nationwide toll at nine, including people found dead while foraging or working and at least one person missing under suspicious circumstances. Recent clusters include multiple maulings in Akita—joggers and residents bitten, a bear trapped in a Yuzawa home that was later killed—and separate attacks in Higashinaruse, Morioka and Tateyama. Analysts and officials link the rise to bears increasingly encroaching on towns as rural populations age and hunters decline, with animals appearing near schools, parks, stores and residential areas. New environment minister Hirotaka Ishihara has vowed tougher measures, including securing and training government hunters and stepping up population management, while researchers warn stronger action is needed to prevent further deaths and large-scale tragedies.