Troops sent to northern Japan to help stop bear attacks on people after casualties hit record Japan's Self-Defense Forces dispatched troops Wednesday to support bear control efforts, after a local governor asked for assistanc Akita Governor Kenta Suzuki made the request during an alarming rise in bear-related injuries across Akita Prefecture.

Japan faces a deadly surge in bear attacks, prompting the government to deploy army troops as communities struggle with rising killings involving Japanese black bears and massive Hokkaido brown bears.

Another bear has been spotted in Akita Prefecture, northern Japan, this time on the grounds of a museum close to a popular tourist destination.