CAIRO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Quartet's envoy to the Middle East Tony Blair stressed here Monday his full support for an Egyptian ceasefire initiative on Gaza, said Egypt's official MENA news agency.

    After meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Blair said he fully supports the Egyptian initiative as a mechanism for halting violence in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip and bringing the peace process back on track.

    Mubarak presented on Jan. 6 a three-point proposal calling for an immediate ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza and give Egypt time to continue its efforts to help reach a lasting truce between the conflicting sides.

    Talking about the possible ceasefire, Blair, who was also the former British prime minister, said he hopes this would take place in the coming days.

    "I think they are now being worked on very hard in detail", he added.

    Asked about the new Quartet's strategy for ending the Gaza crisis, Blair said ceasefire comes first, which will be followed by reconstruction in the coastal enclave, calling for reconciliation among various Palestinian factions.

    In his continued efforts to end Gaza crisis during the past 10 days, Blair has met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Jordanian King Abdullah II and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

    Israel has been carrying out unprecedented intensive military operation in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip since Dec. 27, 2008, which has so far killed 900 Palestinians and wounded more than 4,100 others.