Portuguese prosecutors have ordered the reopening of the investigation into the disappearance of British girl Madeleine McCann six years ago, saying new leads have emerged in the case.
It had been stated earlier this year that the Portuguese inquiry would not be reopened until judges there were convinced that there were solid grounds to do so. The British police began an inquiry in July.
Madeleine went missing from her parents' apartment at a Portuguese beach resort in May 2007, just before her fourth birthday. Her parents were dining at a nearby restaurant at the time.
Despite extensive enquiries she has never been seen again. Portuguese police closed their investigation in 2008.
In a statement, the BBC reports, the office of the country's public prosecutor says there are potential new elements in the case, although it has given no details.
Two senior British police officers met senior Portuguese police in Lisbon last week for a briefing on the new lines of enquiry, which are "separate" to those being followed by British police.
Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were also briefed on the case during the meeting.
British police said earlier this month that they had received hundreds of calls after a new television reconstruction suggested Madeleine had been snatched in a planned abduction.
