Blinken begins latest Middle East tour in Turkey amid fears of wider conflict

The difficulty of Mr Blinken’s task was underlined just hours before his talks with Mr Erdogan as Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah militia fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel

Antony Blinken met Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan (Pool via AP)

US secretary of state Antony Blinken has kicked off his latest Middle East diplomatic mission in Turkey, as fears mount that Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza may explode into a broader conflict.

Mr Blinken’s fourth visit in three months comes amid worrying developments outside of Gaza, including in Lebanon, northern Israel, the Red Sea and Iraq, that have put intense strains on a US push to prevent a regional conflagration in the weeks after the war began, as well as growing international criticism of Israel’s military operation.