Labour shadow minister MP Shabana Mahmood has vowed to defy party leader Ed Miliband - and continue supporting a boycott of goods from Israeli settlements.

The Birmingham MP was ordered to change her stance by the leadership after taking part in a protest which led to the temporary closure of a supermarket in Birmingham city centre.

Labour officials even issued a statement which appeared to suggest she had changed her position.

But Ms Mahmood, MP for Birmingham Ladywood, has now insisted she will not back down - and acknowledged she has “a difference of view with my party”.

She said: “We all agree that Israeli settlements on the West Bank are illegal under international law and they are not part of Israel.

“As such, they are an obstacle to a two state solution and a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine. My position on the boycott of illegal settlement goods - precisely because the settlements themselves are illegal - is a difference of view with my party that is genuinely and respectfully held.

“There is no disagreement that a more general boycott of Israel would not contribute towards a lasting peace in the region - the most important goal for all of us - and that attacks by both sides need to stop.

“I am also hugely supportive of the unambiguous statement by Ed Miliband recently condemning the Prime Minister’s failure to oppose Israel’s incursion into Gaza. I strongly support Labour’s desire to see a progressive lifting of the blockade on Gaza consistent with Israel’s right to security.

“In the coming months I will engage in discussions with colleagues about how in light of the recent tragic breakdown in peace talks between the two sides we can effectively influence the parties to re-engage in a meaningful dialogue to achieve security for the Israelis and justice for the Palestinians.”

Ms Mahmood was part of a protest in support of the people of Gaza on August 2 which forced a Sainsbury’s store in central Birmingham to close.

Free Palestine protest in and outside of Sainsbury's Martineau Place Birmingham city centre
Free Palestine protest in and outside of Sainsbury's Martineau Place Birmingham city centre

And she posted a video to her You Tube account, filmed as the demonstration took place, apparently boasting that the store had lost business because it sold goods from Israeli settlements.

She said in the video:  “It’s half past three and the store has actually just shut as a result of the peaceful protest, that’s about four and a half hours worth of business that Sainsbury’s is losing for supporting goods from the Israeli settlements which are illegal under international law.

“So we’re calling on Sainsbury’s and all other stores that trade settlement goods that they stop doing so, that they do not support people who have broken international law.”

But the Labour leadership disowned her actions earlier this week - and revealed that Ms Mahmood had been told to stick to party policy.

In a statement issued on August 21, a Labour Party spokesperson said: “Ed Miliband has been clear that Labour does not support boycotts of Israel and we resolutely oppose the isolation of Israel.

“Labour remains committed to a comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution, international law and a secure Israel alongside a secure and viable state of Palestine.

“Having spoken to her, Shabana has made clear that she does not support calls for a boycott of Israel but supports the proper labelling of goods from the region as per the DEFRA guidelines.”

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Asked if Ms Mahmood was still a Shadow Treasury Minister, the MP’s spokeswoman said she was.

Israeli settlements are settlements in an area known as the West Bank, on the west bank of the River Jordan. This is land that Israel has occupied since 1967 and, alongside Gaza, are expected to become part of an independent Palestinian state under any final peace agreement. UN resolutions call for the “withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied” in the 1967 conflict.