Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – In response to the recent spate of bear attacks on humans, the Japanese National Police Agency revised the National Public Safety Commission rules on the 6th, allowing police to use rifles to deter bears. The previous rules only permitted the use of rifles in cases such as hijackings; the new rules will take effect on the 13th.
According to reports, starting on the 6th, police dispatched firearms countermeasures units from other prefectural police departments to Iwate and Akita prefectures, where bear attacks are frequent, to conduct joint training with local hunting associations and other organizations to gain a better understanding of bear habits and vital areas.
From now on, if bears appear in areas such as cities and towns in these two prefectures, and emergency hunting measures are insufficient to respond in time, police will hunt and kill them under the Police Officers' Duties Execution Law.
According to the Japanese Ministry of the Environment, as of the 5th, the number of people killed by bear attacks in fiscal year 2025 has reached 13, a record high. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara instructed the National Police Agency in October to study the use of rifles to deter bears.
