The parents of Madeleine McCann are taking a defamation action against a Portuguese newspaper that accused them of killing their daughter.
Gerry McCann said he and his wife, Kate, were "deeply hurt" by the front-page story in Tal & Qualheadlined "PJ believes that the parents killed Maddie".
The article, published on August 24th, claimed the Policia Judiciaria (PJ) - Portugal's detective unit - were certain the McCanns killed Madeleine by accident. It implied that the young girl died a "victim of an excess of drugs", which may have been sedatives.
The McCanns, who are both doctors, "strongly refuted" the report and said they would never use sedatives on any of their three children.
Madeleine disappeared from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in the Algarve while her parents ate with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant on May 3rd.
Portuguese Police have repeatedly said the couple are not suspects in the case.
Mr McCann said: "Kate and I have been deeply hurt by the report in Tal & Qual. We firmly believe that the report was speculative, defamatory and published despite official statements to the contrary, which is why we have instructed lawyers. We hope that this action will encourage responsible reporting in the future."
Papers have been sent to a court in Oporto, in the north of Portugal, where Tal & Qualis based.
In recent weeks the McCanns have been forced to defend themselves against a series of newspaper smears suggesting they could now be suspects in their four-year-old daughter's disappearance.