Three Israeli hostages were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza by Palestinian militants on Saturday, in the sixth exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners under the ceasefire deal that came into effect last month.

Hamas militants have named the next three Israeli male hostages to be released as part of a fragile ceasefire deal that had teetered in recent days amid a major dispute that raised the specter of fighting resuming in the devastated Gaza Strip.

Three men including the last living American-Israeli civilian held in Gaza were freed in a propaganda-tinged event that was calmer than many previous releases.