J-Lo and Ben Affleck make relationship official as she marks 52nd birthday on Instagram

Watch: J-Lo and Ben Affleck cuddle up on friend's Instagram

Jennifer Lopez has finally confirmed that she and ex Ben Affleck have rekindled their relationship, sharing a photo of the couple kissing on her Instagram page.

J-Lo shared the steamy image along with several glamorous bikini pictures to mark her 52nd birthday.

Read more: J-Lo loved £1.8m engagement ring from Affleck

Lopez and Affleck split in 2004 amid constant media attention around their relationship and subsequent engagement, with the tabloids dubbing the couple "Bennifer".

Rumours spread that they were back together earlier this year, following J-Lo's split from former New York Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez.

Now, Lopez has made their relationship official with a very public display of affection on social media.

Lopez and Affleck have remained on good terms since the end of their relationship, with Affleck stating earlier this year that she was treated terribly by the media while they were together.

He added: "People were so f***ing mean about her. Sexist, racist. Ugly, vicious s*** was written about her in ways that if you wrote it now, you would literally be fired for saying those things you said."

Read more: J-Lo reveals why she was fired from retail job

Affleck also echoed the thoughts of many fans when he asked "where are you keeping the fountain of youth?" in an interview to mark 30 years of Lopez's showbiz career.

The star said J-Lo still looks similar to when they were together, while he "looks like I'm in my 40s… at best".

Lopez confessed in 2010 that the constant blitz of paparazzi and attention contributed to her initial split with Affleck, commenting that she felt "under siege for two years" while she was dating the Daredevil star.

This issue was shared by Affleck's ex-wife Jennifer Garner, who revealed she struggled with the level of publicity around their marriage, which came to an end when they divorced in 2018.

She said: "I’d go through a yellow light and there would be 15 cars that would go through the red light without compunction. Anywhere that we went it was a total circus.”

Read more: Affleck praises Jennifer Garner with Mother's Day tribute

Affleck dated Deep Water co-star Ana de Armas in 2020 after the pair met while filming that movie, but it now seems he's firmly back with Lopez.

And he certainly has the support of long-time buddy Matt Damon, who said in May that "it would be awesome" if Bennifer became a reality once again.

Watch: J-Lo dodges question about Ben Affleck romance