European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton was not blindfolded while traveling to meet with former president Mohamed Morsi on Tuesday, European officials say.

EU aides told the New York Times that Ashton was transported to the meeting at night via helicopter so as to maintain secrecy around the former president's location.

A delegation of human rights activists who visited Morsi before Ashton's trip were similarly misled as to Morsi's location, circling in a helicopter for 15 minutes before landing at the undisclosed site.

According to the Egyptian military, the intense security shrouding Morsi's detention is intended for the ousted president's own safety.  There are also speculations that his location remains undisclosed in order to discourage supporters from camping-out in protest, as which occurred outside the Republican Guard headquarters in early July.