A major international human rights group called on the UN to ensure Egypt, and other countries hosting climate conferences, meet human rights standards on Monday. Egypt will host COP27 this November. Human Rights Watch says it has documented numerous government actions over a period of several years that violate basic human rights, including repression of dissent and intimidation of activists that essentially prevent civil society organizations from operating. “There can be no improvement in the environmental situation without improvement in freedom of expression and the overall human rights situation,” one activist said, quoted anonymously in the report. (AP)