Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams and six other people will face no charges in connection with the abduction and murder of Jean McConville in 1972.

An eighth person, Ivor Bell, has already been charged with aiding and abetting the murder of Jean McConville following his arrest in March 2014.

The 78-year-old is also accused of being a member of the IRA. He denies all the charges.

Mr Adams has always vehemently denied allegations, made by former republican comrades, that he personally ordered the killing of Mrs McConville.

Detectives investigating the case arrested the 66-year-old in April last year and questioned him in Antrim for three days.

Sinn Féin claimed a "rump" of police officers were opposed to the peace process and had orchestrated Mr Adams' detention.

The party branded it "political policing", deliberately timed to damage its chances in the upcoming European and local council elections.

In the end, police released him without charge but sent a file for consideration by Northern Ireland's Public Prosecution Service.

The Director of the Service, Barra McGrory QC, who used to be Gerry Adams' lawyer, excused himself from the case.

Now, 18 months later, Deputy Director Pamela Atchinson has announced her decision.

She said: "We have given careful consideration to the evidence currently available in respect of each of the three men and four women reported and have concluded that it is insufficient to provide a reasonable prospect of obtaining a conviction against any of them for a criminal offence".

It is 43 years since Mrs McConville was dragged from her home by a gang of 12 men and women.

The mother of 10, from Divis flats in West Belfast, was wrongly accused of passing information to the security forces.

She was interrogated, shot in the back of the head and secretly buried, becoming one of Northern Ireland's so-called 'Disappeared'.

Her remains were finally located 31 years later at a beach in Co Louth, 50 miles from her Belfast home.

Mrs McConville's son Michael was informed of the decision not to bring any further charges on Tuesday morning.

He said the family's quest for justice would go on.

"Those who ordered, planned and carried out this war crime thought that their guilt could disappear along with her body," he said.

"But it has not and we will continue to seek justice for our mother and see hose responsible held to account no matter how long it takes".