Blair to be Mideast envoy

Occupied Jerusalem: Britain's Tony Blair may land a new job as Middle East peace ambassador when an agreement is reached at Tuesday's meeting of the Middle East Quartet.

Blair, who steps down on Wednesday as prime minister, will be responsible for preparing Palestinians for talks with Israel and help them with security and governance issues.

Diplomats close to the Quartet powers - EU, Russia, the UN and the US – said Blair was likely to be named to the top peacemaking position soon.

The Quartet is meeting in Occupied Jerusalem for talks about the security situation in the region following Hamas's bloody takeover of Gaza nearly two weeks ago. The meeting comes as Hamas said it was ready to talk to its Fatah rivals.

"I think anybody who cares about greater peace and stability in the world knows that a lasting and enduring resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian issue is essential and, as I have said on many occasions, I would do whatever I could to help such a resolution come about," Blair told reporters in London.

However, Hamas criticised the likely appointment, saying Blair was not welcome because of his role in supporting US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Blair has his own black fingerprints in the history of the Palestinian people. He had supported the Zionist occupation's terrorism and massacres against our people," said Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhmoum.