The Sunday World has issued a public apology to Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly in relation to false allegations made against him in articles published 15 years ago.
Mr Kelly settled his action against the newspaper and received an undisclosed sum of money.
He sued the paper after it falsely claimed in an article published in February 1996 that he was the Chief of Staff of the IRA and had responsibility for ending the IRA ceasefire.
It was also falsely claimed in December 1996 that he had a liaison with the US diplomat Martha Pope for ulterior motives.
Senior Counsel for the Sunday World, Oisin Quinn, read out the apology in court.
He said the newspaper acknowledged that both articles were wrong. And he said it apologised to Gerry Kelly for the upset that the articles caused.
Mr Quinn also said the Sunday World accepted that Mr Kelly had played an important part in ending the violence in Northern Ireland and made a positive and significant contribution to the peace process.
Speaking this morning, Mr Kelly criticised the length of time it took the newspaper to admit its wrongdoing.
"This case could have been settled 15 years ago with a simple apology from the Sunday World but they consistently fought to keep the case from going to court," Mr Kelly said.
"I felt I should pursue the case in order to combat the view in some elements of the media that republicans, and particularly ex-prisoners, are fair game and easy targets.
"There is an onus on all journalists and news corporations to report in an honest and fact-based manner.
"To do otherwise, as was done in this case, is to do a disservice not only to the people involved in the story but to the public in general."
