McDonald's has apologised for using the 'Sundae Bloody Sundae' slogan on an ice-cream promotion in Portugal.
Bloody Sunday refers to one of the worst days during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
It saw 13 people shot dead by the British Army on the 30th January 1972.
Another man died four months after the attrocity.
The ad went viral after an Irish customer posted a picture of it on Twitter .
The caption read: "Portugal is cancelled."
Following the social media backlash, the fast food chain said they did not intend to invoke memories of the Troubles by using the ad to promote their two-for-one offer.
McDonald's Portugal said in a statement: "When promoting its Halloween Sundae ice cream, McDonald’s Portugal developed a local market activation for a small number of its restaurants in Portugal.
"The campaign was intended as a celebration of Halloween, not as an insensitive reference to any historical event or to upset or insult anyone in any way.
"We sincerely apologise for any offence or distress this may have caused."
Sunday Bloody Sunday is the name of a song by Irish rock band U2 which was released in 1982.
