Welcome to the Bulletin,

• Gaza aid attacks: An Israeli activist group that has been attacking aid shipments bound for the Gaza Strip has been deplatformed from a leading fundraising platform, Newsweek can reveal exclusively.
• Texas deadly storms: Striking satellite footage has revealed intense storms as they moved across Texas, leaving at least four dead and hundreds of thousands of people without power. See the footage.
• Congress chaos amid hearing: Chaos reigned during a House Oversight Committee hearing on Thursday after Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene mocked Democratic lawmaker Jasmine Crockett over her eyelashes. Watch the video.
• In the ongoing war in Ukraine, satellite images have been released showing the aftermath of a Ukrainian strike using U.S.-supplied missiles on a key Russian military air base in annexed Crimea.

Justice Alito Blames Wife as New Scandal Casts Shadow on Trump Case

TL/DR: The ethics code, similar to the long-standing one to which lower courts are held, states that judges need to remain impartial and avoid political statements on issues that could be brought before them.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito claimed that his wife, Martha-Ann, had sole responsibility for displaying an upside-down American flag outside the couple's home in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

Why it matters: The conservative justice has come under fire after The New York Times reported Thursday that the symbol—which was used at the time by some supporters of former President Donald Trump to contest the election results—was seen flying on Alito's lawn in Alexandria, Virginia, on January 17, 2021, according to photographs. Trump and his allies have repeatedly claimed—despite an absence of evidence—that his 2020 loss to President Joe Biden was due to widespread election fraud.

Read more in-depth coverage:

Clarence Thomas' Latest Ruling Shocks Supreme Court Analysts

What happens now? Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told Newsweek that if Alito’s claims are true, “it's a terrible look, pundits and litigants can't demand Justice Alito's recusal on cases involving Joe Biden or Donald Trump.”

Alvin Bragg Has a Judge Merchan 'Dilemma,' Trump Says

TL/DR: The presumptive 2024 presidential candidate claimed the hush money case is an attempt to harm his chances of winning November's rematch against President Joe Biden.

Donald Trump has claimed that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg wants to drop the hush money case against him but is concerned about pushback from Judge Juan Merchan. Here's what Trump posted on Truth Social.

Why it matters: There is no evidence to back up Trump's claim that Bragg is considering dropping the hush money trial right in the middle of the court proceedings. The former president has also frequently tried to attack Bragg by tying him to George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist who often donates to Democratic and liberal causes. In March 2023, Soros denied to Semafor that he ever donated to Bragg's election campaign.

Read more in-depth coverage:

Alvin Bragg Made 'Beyond Foolish' Move in Donald Trump Trial—Legal Analyst

What happens now? The trial will resume on Monday. Trump is under a gag order that prevents him from publicly speaking about witnesses or the families or those connected to the trial. However, the gag order does allow Trump to attack Merchan and the case against him.

Pro-Putin Faction 'At War' In Georgia

TL/DR: Lawmakers voted 84 to 30 to back what opponents have dubbed the "Russian Law," prompting clashes inside the chamber of Georgia's imposing parliament building and in the surrounding streets.

Georgia is bracing for a repeat showdown between the Moscow-leaning Georgian Dream ruling party and a grassroots pro-Western protest movement as the two sides grapple over the geopolitical trajectory of the small but strategically vital South Caucasus nation.

Why it matters: Several weeks of protest came to a head in the streets of the capital, Tbilisi, on Tuesday when the Georgian Dream-dominated parliament approved the third and final reading of its "foreign agent" law, under which media or civil society groups receiving more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad will have to register as "organizations serving the interests of a foreign power" or face fines. The legislation is akin to that enacted in Russia in 2012, which has allowed President Vladimir Putin to choke domestic dissent further.

Read more in-depth coverage:

Putin Faces New Rebellion in Russia's Back Yard

What happens now? Parliament now has ten days to submit the bill to President Salome Zourabichvili, who has committed to vetoing it within the two-week window constitutionally allowed.

Ukraine's Drones Attack Russia's Only Large Black Sea Oil Refinery

TL/DR: The Tuapse oil refinery, constructed in 1929, is located on Russia's Black Sea coast and is one of the nation's oldest. It supplies fuel to countries including China, Turkey, Malaysia and Singapore.

Ukrainian drones attacked Russia's only oil refinery on the Black Sea coast this morning, authorities said.

Why it matters: Kyiv has ramped up its attacks on Russian refineries this year, hampering gasoline production. At least 13 successful attacks have been carried out on Russian oil refineries during the war so far, targeting some of the largest in the country, according to Ukraine. The recent attack on the Rosneft-owned oil refinery in the southern Russian town of Tuapse was reported by local authorities, who said a fire broke out on the territory of the facility and that emergency services were working to extinguish the blaze.

Read more in-depth coverage:

Russia On Course To Set Grim Record: Kyiv

What happens now? The governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, reported an attempted attack by Ukraine on the port city. He said drone debris had damaged a substation, leaving the city partially without electricity.

Red Lobster Is in Trouble

TL/DR: The future of the seafood chain is uncertain after the sudden closure of dozens of its locations across the U.S. on Monday.

The abrupt closure of more than 50 Red Lobster restaurants across the country on Monday revealed just how deep the crisis experienced by the seafood chain is—putting a question mark on its future.

Why it matters: For years, Red Lobster has struggled with declining sales and profits, significant debt, unfavorable lease terms, and a repeated turnover of executives. One major attempt to improve Red Lobster's standing in the market and grow its customer base, its "Ultimate Endless Shrimp" deal, backfired and is now being blamed as the main factor in its decline.

Read more in-depth coverage:

Red Lobster's 'Endless Shrimp' And 5 Other Disastrous Promotions

What happens now? Earlier this year, Thai Union, Red Lobster's parent company, said it intended to divest from the seafood chain. It is unclear what will come next for the seafood chain. In March, Red Lobster was reportedly considering filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Last month, the company was seeking a buyer, according to CNBC, but found none.

'Long-Lost' Branch of the Nile May Explain Egyptian Pyramid Mystery

A "long-lost" branch of the Nile in Egypt may explain the location of several ancient pyramids, researchers have suggested.

In a study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, an international team reports that they have identified segments of a major extinct section of the river that they named the Ahramat Branch.

Evidence of this branch now lies buried under farmland and desert, but according to the study, it once ran along the eastern edge of the Western Desert Plateau (WSD)—a part of the wider Sahara—just to the west of the course of the modern Nile.