The heads of North Korean neighborhood watch units tasked with spying on citizens gathered in Pyongyang for a “national meeting” this week, according to state media, in a rare event aimed at strengthening public surveillance and the regime’s ideological control.

“The third national meeting of active leaders of people's neighbourhood units” — grassroots administrative groups known in the DPRK as inminban — took place from Sunday to Monday and drew hundreds of participants from around the country, with top officials like Premier Pak Thae Song attending.