 Referring to Canada's self-described role as a "middle power" which was "trusted" for being fair-minded and even-handed, the government under Paul Martin sought to play a role as a mediator, but with no positive impact.In the process, Canada lost the trust of the Israeli government, which objected to what it viewed as a moral failure of Europe as well as Canada, in the wake of mass terror and suicide bombing that took over 1000 Israeli lives, with many more injured.This relationship was further damaged by Canada's leading role in sponsoring and funding the 2001 UN Durban anti-racism conference, which was used as a platform by Palestinians and others for antisemitism and attacks seeking to isolate Israel internationally as an "apartheid state".