Qatar has hired a US firm to counter bad PR in Israel, according to Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani. He dismissed the 'Qatargate' scandal as politically motivated propaganda and accused Israeli politicians of ignoring Qatar's role in hostage releases. Al-Thani also expressed concern about a potential collapse of the ceasefire in Gaza and called for efforts to ensure all parties implement the remaining stages of the agreement.