https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-52910472
The Madeleine McCann case: A timeline
4 June 2020
Image caption It is more than 13 years since Madeleine McCann, then aged three, disappeared
Three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished from a Portuguese holiday apartment 13 years ago.
In the intervening years, a huge, costly police operation has taken place across much of Europe.
The latest development is focused upon a German sex offender who is currently in jail. German prosecutors say they are assuming Madeleine is dead and are treating it as a murder inquiry.
Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry, say all they have ever wanted is to find their daughter.
Here is the story so far.
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2007
The apartment block in Luz in the Algarve, Portugal, where Madeleine McCann went missing Image copyright PA Media
Image caption Madeleine went missing from this apartment block at the Ocean Club. The family's apartment is on the left of the building, as seen here
On 3 May Madeleine, from Rothley, Leicestershire, is on holiday with her family at the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, Portugal.
Her parents go for dinner with a group of friends at a restaurant in the complex. Madeleine and her younger brother and sister - twins - stay in the apartment, 100 yards away
The adults had devised a rota system to check on all their children during the evening
When it is the turn of Kate McCann, she discovers her daughter, Madeleine, has gone
Police are called and staff and guests at the complex search for her until daybreak
Border police and airport staff are put on alert and hundreds of volunteers join efforts to find Madeleine in the following days
Graphic showing Praia da Luz holiday complex
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On 12 May, the McCanns say they "cannot describe the anguish and despair" they are feeling.
Portuguese police say they believe Madeleine was abducted but is still alive and in Portugal.
On 26 May, police issue a description of a man seen on the night of Madeleine's disappearance, possibly carrying a child.
Police searching in long grass and bushes Image copyright PA
Image caption A search took place in the areas around Praia da Luz on the Algarve
In June, a Portuguese police chief admits vital forensic clues may have been destroyed as the scene was not protected properly.
In July, British police send sniffer dogs to assist the investigation, and inspections of the McCann's apartment and rental car are conducted.
By August it is 100 days since Madeleine disappeared. Investigating officers publicly acknowledge she may not be found alive.
On 6 September, Portuguese police interview Kate McCann as a witness. On 7 September, detectives make the couple "arguidos" and days later, the McCanns return to the UK. Prosecutors later say there is no new evidence to justify re-questioning them.
Gerry McCann releases a video in November saying he believes his family was watched by "a predator" in the days before his daughter's disappearance.
2008
Kate and Gerry McCann leave church in Rothley, Leicestershire, after a service to mark the first anniversary of their daughter's disappearance Image copyright PA Media
Image caption Kate and Gerry McCann leave church after a service to mark the first anniversary of their daughter's disappearance
On 20 January the McCanns release sketches of a suspect, based on a description by a British holidaymaker of a "creepy man" seen at the resort.
In April, Portuguese police fly to the UK to sit in on interviews conducted by Leicestershire Police of the McCanns' friends they had dinner with on the night Madeleine disappeared.
On 3 May, one year since the disappearance, Mrs McCann urges people to "pray like mad" for her little girl.
By July Portuguese police say they have submitted their final report on the case. Weeks later, authorities shelve their investigation and lift the "arguido" status of the McCanns.
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2009 and 2010
A poster released by the Find Madeleine Campaign which shows Madeleine McCann as she was aged three, and how she might look now, aged six Image copyright Find Madeleine Campaign/PA
Image caption An image was released of how Madeleine might look at six
On 3 November, new images of how Madeleine might now look are released.
In March 2010, the McCanns criticise the release of previously unseen Portuguese police files - detailing possible sightings of Madeleine - to British newspapers.
A month later, in April, Gerry McCann says it is "incredibly frustrating" that police in Portugal and the UK had not been actively looking for his daughter "for a very long time".
In November, the couple sign a publishing deal to write a book about Madeleine's disappearance.
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2011
Kate and Gerry McCann at an event to launch their book, Madeleine Image copyright PA Media
The McCanns' book, Madeleine, is released in May.
Prime Minister David Cameron asks the Metropolitan Police to help investigate. A two-year review follows.
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2012
How Madeleine might look age nine Image copyright Teri Blythe
Det Ch Insp Andy Redwood, the detective leading the UK review of Madeleine's disappearance, tells an April broadcast of the BBC's Panorama his team is "seeking to bring closure to the case".
A computer-generated image of what Madeleine might look like aged nine is released, a day before Portuguese authorities say they are not reopening their investigation.
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2013
E-fits released by police investigating Madeleine McCann's disappearance Image copyright PA
Image caption The e-fit images feature in a BBC Crimewatch appeal
In May, UK detectives reviewing the case say they have identified "a number of persons of interest".
By July, Scotland Yard announces it has "new evidence and new witnesses" in the case and opens a formal investigation.
By October, Scotland Yard detectives say they have identified 41 potential suspects.
A BBC Crimewatch appeal features e-fit images of a man seen carrying a blond-haired child of three or four in Praia da Luz at about the time Madeleine went missing.
Portuguese police reopen their investigation - to run alongside Scotland Yard's - citing "new lines of inquiry".
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2014
British police searching for Madeleine McCann Image copyright Getty Images
Image caption Met Police officers searched scrubland near where Madeleine vanished in 2014
In January British detectives fly to Portugal amid claims they are planning to make arrests.
In June searches in Praia da Luz are carried out, including an area of scrubland situated south-west of the Ocean Club complex. It yields nothing of interest.
A month later, in July, four suspects are quizzed by police but no new developments emerge.
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2015-19
Madeleine McCann
Image caption Madeleine McCann was three when she went missing in 2007
In September 2015 the British government disclose that the investigation has cost more than £10m.
In April 2017 the four official suspects investigated by police are ruled out of the investigation but senior officers say they are pursuing a "significant line of inquiry".
In June 2019 the UK government says it will fund the Met Police inquiry, which began in 2011, until March 2020.
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2020
A map of the scene
A year later, in June 2020, police reveal that a 43-year-old German prisoner - named by German media as Christian B - has been identified as a suspect. The McCanns thank police, saying: "All we have ever wanted is to find her, uncover the truth and bring those responsible to justice.
"We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive, but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know as we need to find peace."
German investigators have classed it as a murder inquiry and say they are assuming that Madeleine is dead.
The UK's Metropolitan Police says it has received more than 270 calls and emails since a new appeal for information was launched on Wednesday.
Madeleine McCann
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Re: Madeleine McCann
https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/uk-53676474
Christian B: Madeleine McCann suspect's rape appeal 'likely invalid'
06 August 2020
The prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has been advised his appeal against a rape conviction is invalid by a European Court of Justice official.
Christian B, a 43-year-old man currently in prison in Germany, is appealing against his conviction for raping an American woman in 2005.
The attack took place in Praia da Luz, Portugal - the same area where three-year-old Madeleine disappeared in 2007.
His appeal hinges on a legal point relating to his extradition to Germany.
Suspects' surnames are not usually revealed in Germany for privacy reasons.
Who is the German suspect?
The Madeleine McCann case: A timeline
Christian B's legal team has challenged the European arrest warrant issued over the 2005 rape charge.
He was extradited from Italy to Germany two years ago on drug trafficking charges. But he was later convicted of a separate crime, the rape of the 72-year-old American woman in Portugal, and was sentenced to seven years in prison.
The basis for his appeal is that his extradition was not related to the rape case, and authorities in Portugal did not give permission for him to be charged.
The German court handling the appeal sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice (ECJ), which gave a non-binding opinion that German authorities did not have to get permission from Portugal for the rape charge. Italy agreed he could be tried on the rape charge.
Advocate General Michal Bobek said the appeal did not appear valid because Christian B left Germany voluntarily after his first extradition from Portugal, so Portuguese authorities have no role to play.
The final judgement will be made by ECJ judges at a later date.
If that appeal is successful, Christian B could go free next year, at the end of his jail term for the drug offence. He has not been convicted of any crime related to Madeleine McCann.
Christian B was revealed as the main suspect in the case in June, as German and UK police made a fresh appeal for information about Madeleine's disappearance.
He is believed to have been in the area where Madeleine was last seen while on holiday in the Algarve in Portugal.
Police said he was regularly living in the Algarve between 1995 and 2007 and had jobs in the area, including in catering, but also committed burglaries in hotels and dealt drugs.
Image copyright PA Madeleine McCann
Image caption Madeleine McCann was three years old when she went missing in 2007
German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who is leading the Madeleine investigation, has previously said prosecutors have evidence that leads them to believe Christian B killed her, but it is not strong enough to take him to court.
After the appeal he said: "Ultimately, we cannot influence the decision because it is not related to the McCann investigation.
"This does not affect our investigations, but of course we would like to know where our suspect is.
"As long as he is in custody, we know this."
Last month, the Metropolitan Police said the case remained a "missing persons" investigation in the UK because there was no "definitive evidence" as to whether Madeleine was alive or not.
Also in July, a police search was carried out at an allotment in Hanover which it is understood was rented to Christian B in the year of her disappearance.
Christian B: Madeleine McCann suspect's rape appeal 'likely invalid'
06 August 2020
The prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has been advised his appeal against a rape conviction is invalid by a European Court of Justice official.
Christian B, a 43-year-old man currently in prison in Germany, is appealing against his conviction for raping an American woman in 2005.
The attack took place in Praia da Luz, Portugal - the same area where three-year-old Madeleine disappeared in 2007.
His appeal hinges on a legal point relating to his extradition to Germany.
Suspects' surnames are not usually revealed in Germany for privacy reasons.
Who is the German suspect?
The Madeleine McCann case: A timeline
Christian B's legal team has challenged the European arrest warrant issued over the 2005 rape charge.
He was extradited from Italy to Germany two years ago on drug trafficking charges. But he was later convicted of a separate crime, the rape of the 72-year-old American woman in Portugal, and was sentenced to seven years in prison.
The basis for his appeal is that his extradition was not related to the rape case, and authorities in Portugal did not give permission for him to be charged.
The German court handling the appeal sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice (ECJ), which gave a non-binding opinion that German authorities did not have to get permission from Portugal for the rape charge. Italy agreed he could be tried on the rape charge.
Advocate General Michal Bobek said the appeal did not appear valid because Christian B left Germany voluntarily after his first extradition from Portugal, so Portuguese authorities have no role to play.
The final judgement will be made by ECJ judges at a later date.
If that appeal is successful, Christian B could go free next year, at the end of his jail term for the drug offence. He has not been convicted of any crime related to Madeleine McCann.
Christian B was revealed as the main suspect in the case in June, as German and UK police made a fresh appeal for information about Madeleine's disappearance.
He is believed to have been in the area where Madeleine was last seen while on holiday in the Algarve in Portugal.
Police said he was regularly living in the Algarve between 1995 and 2007 and had jobs in the area, including in catering, but also committed burglaries in hotels and dealt drugs.
Image copyright PA Madeleine McCann
Image caption Madeleine McCann was three years old when she went missing in 2007
German prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who is leading the Madeleine investigation, has previously said prosecutors have evidence that leads them to believe Christian B killed her, but it is not strong enough to take him to court.
After the appeal he said: "Ultimately, we cannot influence the decision because it is not related to the McCann investigation.
"This does not affect our investigations, but of course we would like to know where our suspect is.
"As long as he is in custody, we know this."
Last month, the Metropolitan Police said the case remained a "missing persons" investigation in the UK because there was no "definitive evidence" as to whether Madeleine was alive or not.
Also in July, a police search was carried out at an allotment in Hanover which it is understood was rented to Christian B in the year of her disappearance.