The Standard View: Diplomacy must pay off to avoid a wider war in the Middle East

Britain’s diplomatic efforts are intensifying. Fresh from his visit to Israel, the Prime Minister has travelled to Saudi Arabia to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss how to prevent further escalation in the region. He will then fly on to Egypt for talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

US President Joe Biden too has been on a diplomatic mission and appears to have secured an agreement with Egypt to deliver aid to Gaza through the Rafah Crossing, as the humanitarian crisis in the Strip worsens. However, complications persist.

The broader situation is highly volatile. As if evidence were needed of what escalation might look like, the US revealed one of its warships intercepted cruise missiles and drones launched from Yemen which it said were potentially sent towards Israel. Hezbollah has already launched rockets from Lebanon.

As Israel edges closer to a ground invasion of Gaza, and with protests sweeping neighbouring countries, it will require careful statecraft by all sides interested in preventing a wider regional war.

Domestic politics goes on, and Rishi Sunak’s party suffered two big defeats in the Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth by-elections. In the former, triggered by the resignation of Nadine Dorries, Labour secured a swing of 20.5 per cent. In the latter, precipitated by the scandal involving Chris Pincher, the figure was 23.9 per cent.

Of course, voters behave differently when choosing single MPs at by-elections than they do at general elections when the whole Commons is up for grabs. For many this will be a protest vote, while other Tory supporters simply stayed at home.

What these results do tell the Government is that the party might have to give its natural supporters, as well as crucial swing voters, a slightly better reason to brave the weather and vote Conservative.

It is England versus South Africa this weekend, twice. In the rugby, they face the mighty Springboks in Paris with a place in the World Cup final up for grabs — and revenge for 2019’s heartbreaking defeat.

In the cricket, England face the Proteas in Mumbai, for a round-robin encounter that feels increasingly like a knock-out, as both teams have made a shaky start to the tournament. England losing two of their first three matches, South Africa coming off a defeat to the Netherlands.

The beauty of scheduling and time difference means that sports fans will be able to tune into both. Come on England!