15 June 2009 - 19:30

The first group of Iranian pilgrims who arrived in Medina on Monday had to wait for a long time at the airport to be fingerprinted by the Saudi police.

According to informed sources Saudi police have made Iranian pilgrims in long queues for photography and fingerprinting for several hours.

The plane carrying hundreds of Iranian pilgrims landed in Medina at 8:00 p.m. local time, but passengers were kept at the airport for around 7 hours and reached their hotels at about 3 a.m. the next day.

The annual Hajj ritual is a momentous event in the Muslim calendar, attracting some two million visitors to Saudi Arabia every year.

The four-week pilgrimage brings together Muslim worshippers from all corners of the globe. This year the Hajj is taking place in the last week of November.

Iranian pilgrims complained earlier this year that they were discriminated against by Saudi authorities while on the Umrah, the smaller pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

Iranians said at the time this treatment was usually reserved for criminals and terrorists.

Tehran has shown strong reaction to the new rules set by the Saudi officials against Iranian pilgrims.

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