“It may seem odd that a small and poor country that Canada does not even recognise, located half a world away, would matter in the 2019 Canadian election. Yet Palestine does matter - a lot. It featured in the first leader’s debate, on the second day of the election campaign, as Conservative leader Andrew Scheer promised if elected to follow in the footsteps of US President Donald Trump by cutting aid to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), arguing that it was a factor in fomenting antisemitism across the Middle East.”