Поширена виданням Chicago Morning Star інформація про нібито причетність братів Суркісів до виведення коштів з «Приватбанку» є брехливою, заявив агентству «Інтерфакс-Україна» адвокат Віктор Балух, який представляє інтереси згаданих у розслідуванні компаній Camerin Investments, Sunnex Investments, Tamplemon Investments, Berlini Commercial, Lumil Investments, Sofinam Investments LLP.

«Твердження про те, що ці компанії самостійно або в інтересах Григорія та Ігоря Суркісів виводили кошти з «Приватбанку», є абсолютною брехнею і черговим прикладом брудної інформаційної кампанії проти них», – стверджує адвокат.

Він заявляє, що наведені газетою аргументи базуються на недостовірних даних.

«Жодних офіційних запитів від Kroll чи інших уповноважених осіб на адресу компанії не надходило. Маніпулятивні та брехливі твердження спрямовані на дискредитацію наших компаній» – наголосив Борух.

Він додав, що було ухвалене рішення звернутися до суду з вимогою про спростування наведеної виданням інформації та захисту ділової репутації.

Американський часопис Chicago Morning Star ​раніше опублікував статтю «Доповідь агенції «Кролл», Україна: Коломойський і Суркіси вивели гроші з «Приватбанку» під час внесення застави». Чиказьке видання повідомляє, що слідчі агенції «Кролл» виявили схему, згідно з якою стало зрозуміло як Ігор Коломойський разом із Ігорем та Григорієм Суркісами виводив гроші з «Приватбанку» під час процесу націоналізації цього українського банку. Згідно з доповіддю агенції «Кролл», йдеться про суму у приблизно 150 мільйонів доларів.

Газета Kyiv Post 3 серпня опублікувала матеріал, у якому аргументовано ставить під сумнів компетентність Сhicago Morning Star, але вказує на те, що використані сайтом документи були справжніми.

 
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Swimmers and surfboard riders at Manly Beach in Sydney, Australia got a little too close for comfort Sunday when they were splashed by a mother whale as she swam with her calf.In drone video, surfers and swimmers can be seen approaching what marine experts say was a southern right whale and her calf, when the mother takes a swipe at the group with her tail before swimming away with her offspring.  Local reports indicate no one was hurt but other swimmers were not so lucky in a similar incident Saturday. Australian media report two women were injured one seriously, after they approached a humpback whale on Ningaloo Reef, off Australia’s northwest coast.  Australia’s Nine Network Television reported in that incident, one woman was struck by the tail and sustained fractured ribs and internal bleeding, and a second swimmer was struck by the same whale’s pectoral fin. Both were reportedly hospitalized.  Western Australia state government licenses tour operators and sets conditions, including keeping swimmers a safe distance from whales they observe.The government’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions said it was working closely with the industry and the tour operator involved to understand how the incident occurred.Aerial drone video of the incident shows a group of snorkelers and people on surf boards approaching the 15-meter mother whale and her calf at Ningaloo Reef near the town of Exmouth off the northwest coast of Australia.The group apparently got too close, because the mother can be seen swinging her tale at the group.  Australia’s 29-year-old woman was struck by the tail and sustained fractured ribs and internal bleeding.She and was flown to a Perth hospital on Sunday and remained in a serious but stable condition, the WAtoday website reported.The second swimmer was struck by the same whale’s pectoral fin, which tore the swimmer’s hamstring, Australia’s Nine Network television reported.The Western Australian state government licenses tour operators and sets conditions including keeping swimmers a safe distance from whales that they observe.
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Reports that manufacturing activity in the United States and other nations has begun to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic sent Asian markets soaring Tuesday. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index ended its trading session 1.7% higher. Sydney’s S&P/ASX index earned 1.8%.  The KOSPI index in Seoul rose 1.2%, and Taipei’s TSEC index gained 1.5%. In late afternoon trading, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index is 2% higher, Shanghai’s Composite index is slightly lower at 0.1%, and Mumbai’s Sensex is up 1.5%. In commodities trading, gold is selling at $1,990.50, an increase of 0.2%.  U.S. crude is selling flat at $40.98 per barrel, while Brent crude is also virtually unchanged, selling at $43.29 per barrel. All three major U.S. indices are trending upward in futures trading.  
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Japan’s Nippon Steel says it will appeal a ruling by South Korea’s highest court for the seizure of its assets to compensate four South Koreans who were forced into labor during Japan’s brutal colonial occupation of the Korean peninsula between 1910 and 1945.   The Supreme Court issued a ruling in 2018 ordering Nippon to pay $38,000 to the four South Koreans who were forced to work in Japanese factories during World War Two.  An earlier court ruling froze more than 80,000 shares of a joint venture between Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal and South Korean steelmaker POSCO. The decision angered Tokyo, claiming the issue of compensation for Korean forced laborers was settled by the 1965 treaty that normalized bilateral relations between the Asian neighbors. The treaty included $800 million in reparations paid by Japan in the form of economic aid and loans. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government responded to the court ruling by removing Seoul from its list of preferred trading partners, which allowed for the quick approval of critical products used by South Korean electronics manufacturers.   South Korea removed Japan from its list of preferred trading partners in return. Japan’s 35-year colonial occupation has left a bitter legacy among South Koreans, with hundreds of thousands subjected to numerous atrocities, including the so-called “comfort women” who were forced into sexual slavery in Japanese military brothels. 
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The deaths of a number of African American men in police custody have led to a reexamination of U.S. law enforcement and calls to defund local police. One retired police official in Los Angeles says partnerships between the police and community can be part of the solution. Mike O’Sullivan reports.Camera:  Mike O’Sullivan       Produced by:  Rob Raffaele 
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Isaias strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane hours before it is expected to make landfall along the coast of the Carolinas.  The U.S. National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning from South Santee River, South Carolina, to Surf City, North Carolina. The storm’s maximum sustained winds reached 121 kph (75 mph) Monday evening and was centered about 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Workers stack sandbags around a hydro-dam as they prepare for Tropical Storm Isaias in the lower Manhattan area of New York City, Aug 3, 2020.North of the expected landfall area, tropical storm warnings were in effect as far away as Long Island, New York and the Merrimack River in New Hampshire. Forecasters said the Carolinas and other states in the region can expect rainfall amounts of 7 to 15 centimeters (3 to 6 inches). Winds along the coast of the Carolinas are expected to exceed 60 kph (37 mph) in some places. The storm is also expected to bring a storm surge of up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) in portions of North and South Carolina. The mayor of Charleston, South Carolina, John Tecklenburg, said city offices would close early Monday but said he did not think there was a need to issue a curfew.  President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency in North Carolina ahead of the storm’s arrival there to free up funds for federal officials to help towns and cities coordinate disaster relief efforts. Trump made a similar declaration Saturday for Florida. 
 
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With a rainbow as a backdrop, Italy’s president inaugurated a replacement bridge Monday in Genoa, but families of those killed when the Morandi Bridge collapsed boycotted the ceremony along with the firefighters who pulled many of the 43 dead from smashed cars and trucks.  Two years ago this month, a stretch of the Morandi Bridge suddenly gave way in a violent rainstorm, sending vehicles plunging to the dry riverbed below. The new structure — a key artery for the northwestern Italian port city — was erected thanks to round-the-clock construction, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Rain drenched the new bridge, stopping just before the ceremony, which started with a recitation of the names of those who died. Renowned architect Renzo Piano designed the bridge to evoke a ship’s bow, to honor his native city’s proud maritime history. The span has 43 lamps in memory of the collapse victims.Traffic will start crossing San Giorgio Bridge, named after St. George, popular in Genoa, on Wednesday. “We are suspended between grief” over the tragedy and “pride for the construction of the new bridge,” Piano told his fellow Genoese in a speech. Renzo Piano walks along the new San Giorgio Bridge in Genoa, Italy, August 3, 2020.The families of the dead are upset that the company that maintained Morandi Bridge will still run the new structure for a while more — even though poor maintenance is being investigated as a possible cause of the collapse. “No one can give us back our dead,” Egle Possetti, who leads an association of the bridge victims’ families, told Italian news channel Sky TG24. Possetti, who lost a sister and other family members in the collapse, said she hoped attention would stay focused on the ongoing criminal investigation into the collapse. Speaking before the ceremony with relatives of the people killed in the collapse, President Sergio Mattarella said he agreed with their decision to meet with him privately and not during the ceremony on the bridge.  The replacement bridge doesn’t cancel out what happened in Genoa, Mattarella said.  “On the contrary, I see it, in good part, as a kind of memorial stone that recalls the victims,” he said.The president added that he shared the families’ quest for justice. “Responsibility isn’t generic. It always has a first name and surname,” Mattarella said, calling for “severe, precise, rigorous action to ascertain responsibility.”FILE – A general view of the collapsed Morandi Bridge in the port city of Genoa, Italy, February 7, 2019.During the ceremony, Mayor Marco Bucci had words for those who lost loved ones in the collapse. “This must never happen again,” the mayor said. Nine Italian air force jets flew in formation over the bridge, trailing smoke in the red, white and green colors of the country’s flag.  Firefighters who extracted survivors and bodies from tons of twisted metal two years ago also boycotted the ceremony in solidarity with the families, Sky TG24 reported.  Prosecutors are probing what caused Morandi Bridge to collapse on August 14, 2018, on the eve of Italy’s biggest summer holiday. Riccardo Morandi, the engineer who designed the bridge built in the 1960s, had recommended continual maintenance to remove rust, especially from the corrosive effect of sea air in the Mediterranean port city, and pollution’s toll on concrete.  Prosecutors have said they are investigating to see whether proper maintenance was consistently carried out over the years on the heavily used span. Earlier this summer, the Italian government forged a deal in which the Benetton fashion family agreed to exit Autostrade per l’Italia, the company that manages and maintains many of Italy’s highways and bridges. Its highway concession had included Morandi Bridge. But that exit will take some time, as Autostrade becomes a public company under the deal and pays 3.4 billion euros ($4 billion) in compensation.   
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A Manhattan prosecutor trying to get President Donald Trump’s tax returns told a judge Monday that he was justified in demanding them, citing public reports of “extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization.” Trump’s lawyers last month said the grand jury subpoena for the tax returns was issued in bad faith and amounted to harassment of the president. Manhattan District Attorney District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. seeks eight years of the Republican president’s personal and corporate tax records but has disclosed little about what prompted him to request the records, other than part of the investigation relates to payoffs to women to keep them quiet about alleged affairs with Trump. In a court filing Monday, though, attorneys for Vance said Trump’s arguments that the subpoena was too broad stemmed from “the false premise” that the probe was limited to “hush-money” payments.FILE – Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., May 10, 2018.”This Court is already aware that this assertion is fatally undermined by undisputed information in the public record,” Vance’s lawyers wrote. They said that information confirms the validity of a subpoena seeking evidence related to potentially improper financial transactions by a variety of individuals and entities over a period of years. They said public reporting demonstrates that at the time the subpoena was issued “there were public allegations of possible criminal activity at Plaintiff’s New York County-based Trump Organization dating back over a decade.” “These reports describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New York’s borders. This possible criminal activity occurred within the applicable statutes of limitations, particularly if the transactions involved a continuing pattern of conduct,” the lawyers said. The lawyers urged Judge Victor Marrero to swiftly reject Trump’s arguments, saying the baseless claims were threatening the investigation. Marrero, who ruled against Trump last year, has scheduled arguments to be fully submitted by mid-August. “Every day that goes by is another day Plaintiff effectively achieves the ‘temporary absolute immunity’ that was rejected by this Court, the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court,” Vance’s lawyers said. “Every such day also increases the prospect of a loss of evidence or the expiration of limitations periods — the precise concerns that the Supreme Court observed justified its rejection of Plaintiff’s immunity claim in the first place.” The Supreme Court last month rejected claims by Trump’s lawyers that the president could not be criminally investigated while he was in office. Vance’s lawyers said Trump was not entitled to know the scope and nature of the grand jury investigation. But they said information already in the public domain about Trump’s business dealings provided satisfactory support for the subpoena of his tax records. FILE – Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump, arrives at his Manhattan apartment after being released from federal prison to serve the remainder of sentence under home confinement in New York City, May 21, 2020.They cited several newspaper articles, including one in The Washington Post examining allegations that Trump had a practice of sending out financial statements to potential business partners and banks that inflated the worth of his properties by claiming they were bigger or more potentially lucrative than they were. Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, described such practices during congressional testimony. Vance sought the tax records in part for a probe of how Cohen arranged during the 2016 presidential race to keep the porn actress Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal from airing claims of extramarital affairs with Trump. Trump has denied the affairs. Cohen is serving the last two years of a three-year prison sentence in home confinement after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and lying to Congress, among other charges. He said he plans to publish a book critical of the president before the November election.  
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U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday criticized a key White House coronavirus adviser after she told a national television audience that a new surge in infections was “extraordinarily widespread” in rural areas of the country and cities. Trump, in a Twitter comment, claimed, “Much of our Country is doing very well. Open the Schools!”   Cases up because of BIG Testing! Much of our Country is doing very well. Open the Schools!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 3, 2020His assessment came a day after Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force coordinator, told CNN, “We are in a new phase. What we are seeing today is different from March and April. To everybody who lives in a rural area: You are not immune or protected from this virus.” Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the leader of the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, had told ABC on Sunday she had no confidence in Birx’s earlier assessments weeks ago that the virus was receding in the U.S. before the new surge that developed in mid-June.  “I think the President has been spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee so, I don’t have confidence there, no,” Pelosi said on ABC’s This Week show. Trump tweeted: “So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics. In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!” So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics. In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 3, 2020In another tweet, he claimed, “With the exception of New York & a few other locations, we’ve done MUCH better than most other Countries in dealing with the China Virus. Many of these countries are now having a major second wave. The Fake News is working overtime to make the USA (& me) look as bad as possible!” With the exception of New York & a few other locations, we’ve done MUCH better than most other Countries in dealing with the China Virus. Many of these countries are now having a major second wave. The Fake News is working overtime to make the USA (& me) look as bad as possible!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 3, 2020Trump’s considerably more favorable view of how the U.S. is faring against the virus comes as he is facing a difficult re-election contest Nov. 3 against a Democratic opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, who for weeks has led him in national polling.  Trump has claimed to be “a wartime president” in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, but Biden has retorted that Trump has abandoned the battlefield fight against the disease.  Birx said what she witnessed as she traveled to 14 states in the last three weeks gave her concern. “As I traveled around the country, I saw all of America moving,” Birx said. “If you have chosen to go on vacation into a hot spot, you really need to come back and protect those with comorbidities and assume you’re infected.” Admiral Brett Giroir, an assistant Health and Human Services secretary, stressed the continued need for wearing face masks. “If we don’t do that, and if we don’t limit the indoor crowded spaces, the virus will continue to run,” he said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “We are very concerned and this is a very serious point,” he said. The U.S. has recorded nearly 155,000 coronavirus deaths and more than 4.6 million confirmed infections, with both figures the highest national totals across the world. 
 
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In a report Monday, the World Health Organization (WHO) says it is never too late for even the worst infected countries to turn the COVID-19 pandemic around – if strong leaders encourage their populations to implement proven basic health measures.  
 
Six months ago, when the WHO declared COVID-19 a public health emergency of international concern, there were fewer than 100 cases and no deaths outside China. WHO now reports the number of cases globally has surged to more than 17.5 million and deaths have increased to nearly 700,000.
 
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says countries have to remain permanently vigilant and not take the virus for granted.  In the past week alone, he noted several countries that appeared to be past the worst, are now contending with fresh spikes in cases.FILE – WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends the a session of the WHO Executive Board held virtually by videoconference, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, May 22, 2020, in this image provided by the World Health Organization in Geneva.“We have also seen how some countries, regions, or localities that had a high number of cases are now bringing the outbreak under control.  It is not easy, of course … when leaders step up and work intensely with their populations, this disease can be brought under control,” he said.
 
And when that happens, Tedros said it is important that governments keep safeguards and monitoring in place.  He warned that lifting restrictions too quickly can lead to a resurgence.
 
The WHO chief said progress is being made in developing safe therapeutics to treat people infected with the coronavirus.  He noted several vaccines currently are in phase three clinical trials.  He agreed that great hope rests in having safe, effective vaccines that can help protect people from infection. 
 
“However, there is no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be.  For now, stopping outbreaks comes down to the basics of public health and disease control. Testing, isolating and treating patients, and tracing and quarantining their contacts. Do it all,” Tedros said.   
 
The WHO urges people to wear masks, which it says are a key tool in efforts to stop the spread of the virus.  It says people who wear masks protect themselves and others from becoming infected.   
 
This week, the WHO and partners are launching a so-called mask challenge. Tedros said people are being asked to send photos of themselves wearing a mask in a show of solidarity in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
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