Canada first to cut off Palestinian Authority funding

With a new Hamas-led government in power of the Palestinian Authority, Canada is the first government (besides Israel) to cut off financial assistance.

Canada will continue to give humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people through U.N. and nongovernment organizations. Hamas officially took over earlier today.

While Canada is a close ally of Israel, the country is also a strong proponent of Palestinian statehood. And doesn't have the trigger response that the U.S. has.

While the move is not a surprise, and other countries are expected to follow, I'm surprised Canada is leading the initiative. The Conservatives are still feeling their way around foreign policy, making some mistakes along the way. Prime Minister Stephen Harper wants to send a different tone in the foreign policy. So maybe I shouldn't be surprised at this reaction.