About 3,000 couples from around the world have taken part in a mass wedding at the South Korean headquarters of the controversial Unification Church.

Many of the couples had met just days before and had been matched by Church authorities before Saturday’s ceremony in Gapyeong, north-east of Seoul.

The Church’s mass weddings – which take place regularly – began in the 1960s.

Founded by late Sun Myung Moon, the Church has been accused of brainwashing its followers, a claim it denies.

Sung Myung Moon died in September 2013 aged 92.

He is revered by his followers, who are often referred to as “Moonies”. Critics have described him as a charlatan.