DUBLIN – Former Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has been awarded €100,000 in damages after winning a High Court libel case against the BBC.
The jury on Friday found that a BBC Spotlight programme, along with an online article, defamed Mr Adams by suggesting he sanctioned the killing of former Sinn Féin official Denis Donaldson—an allegation he has consistently denied.
The court ruled that the words used in the programme and article carried that meaning and were not presented in a fair or reasonable manner.
Mr Donaldson, a former senior Sinn Féin official, was shot dead in County Donegal in 2006, just months after revealing he had worked as an informant for the police and British intelligence services for over two decades.
The libel case centred around a BBC Spotlight broadcast aired in September 2016, in which an anonymous source—given the pseudonym “Martin”—claimed that the killing was approved by the IRA leadership, and that Mr Adams had given “the final say”.
In its verdict, the jury concluded that the BBC’s actions did not demonstrate good faith and failed to meet standards of fair and responsible journalism.
Following the ruling, Mr Adams welcomed the outcome, reiterating that he had no involvement in Mr Donaldson’s death.
