Daily Briefing Jan. 18: What's the status of the status quo on the Temple Mount?

Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman on a fracas with Jordan over an awkward ambassadorial visit; health reporter Nathan Jeffay on cancer-stopping peptides and serious silliness

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 15-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, from Sunday through Thursday.

Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and health reporter Nathan Jeffay join host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today’s episode.

The visit of Jordan’s ambassador to Israel Ghassan Majali to the Temple Mount on Tuesday caused a mini diplomatic incident. How does this relate to the idea of the status quo?

On Monday, Hamas released a video it claims shows Israeli prisoner Avera Mengistu, whose identity was seemingly verified by his family and confirmed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In terms of Hamas’s geopolitical strategy, why would the terror group release the video now?

A Bar Ilan University-produced peptide just may eventually stop tumors causing secondary cancer. Jeffay breaks it down for us.

The New York Times has reported that the United States is moving a stockpile of some 300,000 artillery shells from Israel to Ukraine. Could this affect Israel’s relations with Russia?

And finally, we hear about the science of silliness. Israel is a leader in medical clowning and a new study documents the method behind the madness.