A T-shirt portraying an IRA sniper which provoked outrage when it appeared on Sinn Féin's revamped official website has been removed.
The shirt, bearing the slogan "Sniper at Work" - a reference to the infamous marksman who operated in south Armagh at the height of the Troubles - can no longer be bought at the website's online shop.
The SDLP and unionists who accused the republicans of glorifying violence claimed Sinn Féin had buckled under intense pressure. The SDLP former Assembly member Mr Eugene McMenamin said: "It's obvious that the huge public outcry caused this. That T-shirt was appalling, particularly to those whose relatives lost their lives to that sniper."
Another T-shirt with the logo "IRA Undefeated Army" was still available for purchase last night.
The merchandise caused unrest on both sides of the Atlantic, and there were reports that a Dublin-based Internet Service Provider (ISP) planned to pull the plug on the website.
A Sinn Féin spokesman last night dismissed the claims, saying the site was hosted by an American ISP.