Israeli and Hamas leaders have marked the start of a six-week ceasefire in Gaza by releasing prisoners and hostages. Hamas returned three Israeli hostages and Israeli authorities freed 90 Palestinian prisoners. But one expert says the chance of a longer-term truce depends greatly on Washington.

Three women freed after 471 days

Three women were handed over to Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip hours after the ceasefire began on Sunday. Reuters quotes an Israeli official as saying they are in good health.

Hamas is expected to gradually release 33 of the roughly 100 hostages held in Gaza during the six-week ceasefire period.

Israel is scheduled to release Palestinian prisoners and pull its forces from highly populated areas during the ceasefire.

Israeli authorities freed 90 Palestinian prisoners on Monday.

The Israeli military announced on Sunday that its troops had taken up the defensive positions outlined in the agreement.

The US think tank Institute for the Study of War also reported that the Israel Defense Forces withdrew from areas in the northern and southern Gaza Strip on Sunday.

Joy and sorrow in Gaza

Israel and Hamas are now expected to hold talks on reconstruction, as well as a permanent ceasefire.

People in the Gaza Strip have been emerging from shelters after months of bombardment. Many are returning to piles of rubble where homes once stood, searching for anything that survived the damage.

Nepa Men And Women Team Finish Second Losing To India In first Kho Kho World Cup final

Nepali women’s and men’s teams finished as the runners-up as they lost to the teams of host India in the final of the Kho Kho World Cup in New Delhi, India, Sunday night.

However, despite losing in the finals, Nepali teams were eligible to keep their heads high as they finished as the second-best team of the world in both men’s and women’s categories in the first edition of the Kho Kho World Cup where 20 men and 19 women national teams participated.

Furthermore, the Nepali women’s team lost the first game of the tournament (January 13-19) when the hosts at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium beat them.

It was a great moment for Nepal as the national kho kho teams raised their standards in front of the world.