Hamas fighters on Saturday paraded the captives onto a stage in Gaza’s southern city of Khan Yunis, where the ‘Israelis’ addressed the crowd before their handover to the Red Cross.

The three men, holding gift bags given and a certificate to mark the end of their captivity, called for the completion of further exchanges of captives under the ceasefire deal.

The release is the sixth since the truce took effect on January 19. It came after fears last week that the deal was near collapse after Israel’s refusal to allow enough humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Hamas released a statement about the release of the three captives, saying the images of al-Quds and al-Aqsa Mosque at the handover site, as well as the large presence of Palestinians there, were a message to Israel and its backers “that they are a red line”.

“The release of the sixth batch of enemy prisoners confirms that there is no way to release them except through negotiations and by adhering to the requirements of the ceasefire agreement,” it said.

The group said the world watched the “resistance’s achievement” in the handover, which showed Palestinian cohesion.

“We say to the whole world: there is no migration except to al-Quds, and this is our response to all the calls for displacement and liquidation launched by Trump and those who support his approach from the forces of colonialism and occupation.”

Al Masirah report