TOKYO: Japan will allow riot police to shoot bears with rifles in arevision of its strict gun laws announced on Thursday (Nov 6) as authorities battle a record number of fatal attacks.

Bears have killed 13 people since Apr 1, more than twice the previous annual record, as the animals venture further out of their habitats, with the rise in attacks blamed indirectly on climate change, a falling human population and other factors.

The revision came after media reports said handguns issued to regular Japanese police are of limited use against bears because the weapons are not powerful enough to kill them.

Riot police armed with rifles will now be deployed to the northern regions of Iwate and Akita, where most of the attacks have taken place, the National Police Agency (NPA) said.

They will receive guidance on bear habits there from local hunters’ associations before beginning operations on Nov 13, the NPA said in a statement.

The changes come a day after Japan began deploying soldiers to the area, although the troops will not carry firearms or hunt the bears.

Equipped with anti-bear sprays, protective gear and net launchers, their main tasks will instead include transporting traps used for capturing the animals.

New Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is also scrambling to draft a special policy package to deal with the crisis.

Scientists say that bear numbers have grown in Japan in recent years thanks to an abundance of food such as acorns, deer and boars due to a warming climate.

Rural depopulation has also blurred traditional boundaries between towns and bear habitats, encouraging bears to expand their habitats towards residential areas, according to researchers.