Japan is facing a new crisis that has led to military intervention. But this has nothing to do with national security or international rivalries.
Since the spring, more than a dozen people in Japan have been killed by bear attacks. At least a hundred more have been injured. It's unprecedented.
Governors of northern prefectures have come to Tokyo looking for help.
National broadcaster NHK quotes metropolitan officials who say there have even been more than 135 sightings of Asian black bears in Tokyo.
The situation has gotten so bad in the mountains of the northern prefecture of Akita that the country's military is being enlisted to set traps, although they are not allowed to shoot the bears.
On Monday, two people were injured in separate bear attacks in Akita, and a third was found dead after apparently being mauled by a bear.
Other victims have included a newspaper deliveryman, a woman taking out the trash, and a man walking to a village office.
Bears have also broken into schools, homes and grocery stores.
Scarcity of food is one motivation for the movement.
Scientists say climate change is bringing bears in this part of Japan into closer proximity to humans than ever before.
Authorities are trying a variety of methods to keep the two species apart for the next month or so — until it's the season for hibernation.
