Arabs and Muslims to Be Fingerprinted at Us Airports

The US yesterday introduced a sweeping new security regime at its airports and borders, photographing and fingerprinting visitors from Arab and Muslim countries.

The regulations, which were denounced by critics as ethnic profiling, went into effect at all American airports and border crossings.

They require all visitors from certain predominantly Muslim countries to undergo additional security checks on their arrival in the US.

As their fingerprints are run through computer databanks for matches with known criminals and terrorists, the new arrivals will be photographed and interviewed by immigration officials about their plans for their stay in the US.

If they are allowed into the country for an extended stay, they must check in with immigration authorities within a month and report any change of address or job within 10 days.

The measures were initially aimed at citizens of Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Syria and Libya, all of which are included on a state department list of countries sponsoring state terrorism.

However, the justice department said last month that the regulations would also apply to men from Pakistan, Yemen and Saudi Arabia between the ages of 16 and 45.

Yesterday, US embassies in Egypt and Jordan warned travellers that they, too, could spend their first moments in America being fingerprinted, photographed and questioned.

"The process is not static. The criteria may change as intelligence reports change," said Jorge Martinez, a spokesman for the justice department.

He said that as many as 200,000 visitors to the US would be subjected to the new measures every year, with the numbers of those affected fluctuating according to security assessments, which will not be made public. However, he was insistent that the new security regime did not target Muslim or Arab travellers.

"I can't specify criteria, but it is not specific to any race or religion," Mr Martinez said.

Critics say that the measures discriminate against Arab and Muslim travellers, and create needless airport delays and embarrassment for travellers who had already been vetted while applying for their visas.

"It creates an illusion of security but does little to produce any results," said Hodan Hassan, a spokeswoman for the Council of American Islamic Relations. "A whole group of people who are already vetted at embassies when they get their visas, when they come to the country are pulled out of line and fingerprinted. It's a rude awakening for many, and does little to help in the war against terror because it creates resentment."

According to a memo from the immigration and naturalisation service obtained by the Associated Press, immigration inspectors should also examine the visitor's past travels - and seek explanations for trips to countries in the Middle East, predominantly Muslim countries such as Afghanistan, Indonesia and Malaysia, and Cuba and North Korea.

Visitors to the US from Muslim countries already face extra scrutiny. Two months after the September 11 attacks, the authorities required travellers from 26 mainly Muslim states to obtain FBI clearance before their visas were processed at US consulates, delaying travel plans for businessmen and students at American universities for six weeks at a time.