Hamas freed six Israeli hostages due to be released on Saturday even as heightened tension between the adversaries clouded the future of the fragile ceasefire deal.

In the central town of Nuseirat, three Israeli men in their 20s—Omer Wenkert, Omer Shem Tov, and Eliya Cohen—were posing alongside the fighters. A beaming Omer Shem Tov blew kisses to the crowd, flashed the thumbs up, and even kissed the militant next to him on the head.