What is the best way to avoid all out war in the Middle East?

Iranians follow a truck carrying the coffins of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and his bodyguard Credit: AP

Dead civilians, high-level assassinations, plans for revenge and a continual barrage of missiles back and forth between Lebanon and Israel and that’s just this week.

What next week will hold is anyone’s guess and everyone’s dread.

Despite what has happened in the past few days this isn’t officially war and efforts continue to avert that.

The Americans are talking to the Israelis. The French are talking to the Iranians. Yesterday the British foreign and defence secretaries were in Beirut speaking with the Lebanese.

Their visit coincided with the funeral in Tehran of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ political leader and the funeral in Lebanon of Fuad Shkur, one of Hezbollah’s military commanders.

As the Ayatollah prayed over Haniyeh, in Beirut Hezbollah’s leader vowed revenge. There was little hope the assassinations would go without response and by last night all hope was gone.

Now it’s just a matter of scale, how big will the retaliation be and with what consequence. There seems little that can avert more bloodshed and a larger regional war.

However, there is one thing that would allow everyone to save face and take the off-ramp.

That is a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

Of course, the events of the week, not least the assassination of Hamas’ chief negotiator, have thrown that fraught process into even greater jeopardy.

But the jeopardy of not finding a solution could be catastrophic for all.

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A cease-fire deal would first stop the fighting in Gaza. Iran and its proxies have waged their own battles on behalf of Gaza and a deal would likely halt their actions.

A deal would also end, or at least reduce, the continual rockets and missiles being fired across Lebanon’s southern border by Hezbollah.

Finding a path to a deal now would allow all those involved to save face while saving lives not just in Gaza, but across the region.

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