Kyodo via Reuters
A wooden boat, which drifted ashore with eight partially skeletal bodies and was found by the Japan Coast Guard, is seen in Oga, Akita Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo on November 27, 2017.
- Another "ghost ship", suspected to be from North Korea, has washed ashore in Japan.
- The boat contained the remains of seven men, and a North Korean propaganda pin.
- 2017 saw the most ghost ships to arrive in Japan since data collection began.
A boat that washed ashore in Japan this month appears to be another North Korean ghost ship.
The capsized boat, that had seven bodies on board, washed ashore in the Ishikawa Prefecture, east of Tokyo, last Wednesday. Police announced on Tuesday it had found decayed remains of seven men inside small rooms, according to Kyodo News.
A badge portraying former North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il was also found on the boat.
In 2017, 104 ghost ships washed ashore in Japan, the most since data began being collected in 2013.
Many of the ships have bodies on board. Japan is struggling to deal with the remains of North Korean fisherman, as the two countries don't have diplomatic relations.
The reason for the large spike in North Korean fishing boats arriving in Japan is unknown, but experts have told Business Insider it could indicate a food shortage in the country.