KATHMANDU, Jan. 30 -- With Hamas beginning to release foreign nationals alongside Israeli hostages as part of the latest ceasefire deal with Israel, there are strong hopes that a Nepali national believed to be in their captivity will soon be freed.

On Thursday, Hamas released eight hostages-three Israeli and five Thai nationals-in Gaza. In response, Israel is expected to release 110 Palestinian security prisoners. This marks the third such release since a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip took effect earlier this month. Hamas had previously released a total of seven Israeli hostages-three on January 19 and four more on January 25.

As part of the latest peace deal, Hamas is set to release 33 hostages, including women, children, older adults an...