defamation

Gerry Adams donates to ‘good causes’ after BBC pays 100,000 euro damages

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https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/gerry-adams-bbc-spotlight-sinn-fein-high-court-b1243624.html

The broadcaster lost a major defamation case earlier this year after Mr Adams took them to court over a 2016 episode of its Spotlight programme

Former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (Brian Lawless/PA)

Gerry Adams has said he has made donations to “good causes” after the BBC paid the former Sinn Fein president 100,000 euro (£84,000) in defamation damages.

The broadcaster lost a defamation case earlier this year after Mr Adams took them to court over a 2016 episode of its Spotlight programme and an accompanying online story.

They contained an allegation that Mr Adams sanctioned the killing of former Sinn Fein official Denis Donaldson.

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[D]onations have been made to “Unicef for the children of Gaza”, local GAA organisations, a support group for republican prisoners and their families called An Cumman Cabhrach, to the Irish language sector, to the “homeless and Belfast based-youth, mental health and suicide prevention projects” and others.
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Original article at https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/gerry-adams-bbc-spotlight-sinn-fein-high-court-b1243624.html

Continue ReadingGerry Adams donates to ‘good causes’ after BBC pays 100,000 euro damages

Gerry Adams awarded €100,000 damages in libel victory over BBC

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https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/may/30/gerry-adams-defamation-action-against-bbc-over-murdered-spy-claim

Former Sinn Féin leader sued broadcaster over allegation in documentary that he sanctioned murder of MI5 informant

Gerry Adams has won a defamation action against the BBC over a documentary that carried a claim he sanctioned the murder of an MI5 informant in 2006.

A jury at Dublin’s high court on Friday found that the BBC had not acted in good faith or in a fair and reasonable way and awarded the former Sinn Féin leader €100,000 (£84,000) in damages

The verdict came after a high-profile four-week trial that scrutinised Adams’s alleged membership of the IRA and his role during Northern Ireland’s Troubles and peace process.

Lawyers for Adams accused the BBC of a “grievous smear” and “hatchet job”. Lawyers for the broadcaster defended the documentary and said the libel action was a cynical attempt to launder Adams’s reputation.

The former West Belfast MP said a BBC Spotlight documentary and accompanying online article defamed him in 2016 by claiming he had sanctioned the murder of Denis Donaldson, a former Sinn Féin official who was shot dead in County Donegal months after admitting he had for decades been a police and MI5 informant. The claim about Adams was made by an anonymous source known only as “Martin”.

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Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/may/30/gerry-adams-defamation-action-against-bbc-over-murdered-spy-claim

Continue ReadingGerry Adams awarded €100,000 damages in libel victory over BBC