All along the road to the COP27 conference centre here in Sharm el-Sheikh you’ll see men in dark suits standing alone in dusty fields and empty streets.
These appear to be security personnel, drafted in to ensure that nothing disturbs this important event.
That’s doubly true today when world leaders will be at the meeting, delivering their speeches and attending roundtable discussions.
Keeping a lid on any demonstrations seems a key aim for the Egyptian authorities, although they say they are happy to facilitate protests in a designated space, at a designated time.
The sense of being watched doesn’t just involve the men in black.A COP27 app, provided by the Egyptians, have been reported to the BBC as capable of spying on a user’s phone.Once downloaded it has access to photos, emails and a user’s location.
Attendees are being discouraged from downloading it.Cabs across Sharm are expected by the authorities to have video cameras installed.All this adds to the eerie, slightly paranoid atmosphere surrounding this COP.Article share toolsView more share options