Alaa Abdel Fattah + COP27 continue to hold the world’s attention
It should come as no surprise that the international press is once again laser-focused on COP27 and human rights this morning.
Alaa Abdel Fattah’s hunger strike continues to dominate the conversation The jailed activist’s sister, Sanaa Seif, flew to Sharm El Sheikh yesterday to press for her brother’s release on the day that UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak expressed “deep concern” about the situation during talks with President El Sisi. AFP, Reuters, CNN ,CNBC, Sky News and the New York Times all have coverage.
The international criticism keeps on coming: The Guardian reports that some attendees aren’t happy with the government’s restrictive firewall, which it claims blocks a host of websites required by delegates and journalists for the summit. Meanwhile, the New York Times writes disapprovingly about Egypt’s ambitions to become a regional natural gas power (toz, begad) and grouses about Coca-Cola being on board as a sponsor of the summit. The Wall Street Journal is the latest to write about the tight surveillance of conference attendees and apparent unfriendliness to climate protests.
In COP27 miscellany:
- The New York Times spotlights Sharm El Sheikh as the setting for this year’s summit.
- CNBC sat down for an interview with COP27 President Sameh Shoukry (watch, runtime: 10:20).
- The Washington Post is the latest to run a piece on Greta Thunberg’s decision to skip the summit.