A 74-year-old Italian man who was found guilty of a kidnapping carried out by a far-left militant group in the 1970s has escaped while under house arrest in Argentina and is on the run. Leonardo Bertulazzi used a harness to abseil down from a fifth-floor balcony in the capital, Buenos Aires. His escape was not immediately registered because he had tampered with his electronic ankle monitor so that it continued to transmit body temperature measurements even after he had prised it open and absconded. Bertulazzi already spent decades as a fugitive after he was sentenced in absentia in Italy for the 1977 kidnapping of Italian naval engineer Pietro Costa. He was awaiting extradition to Italy and was being monitored by the Argentine ministry of security through an ankle tag which registers the wearer's body temperature and movements.

Kennedys sue to block Trump's arch, arguing it would cast shadow on JFK's grave Image caption, An artist's rendering of Trump's proposed arch near Arlington Cemetery The family of former US President John F Kennedy has sued to block construction of a triumphal arch that President Donald Trump plans to build in the nation's capital. Nine members of the political dynasty argue the 250ft (76m) structure would block the view of Kennedy's grave, as well as the graves of thousands of veterans buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Last week, a US judge temporarily halted the project on the heels of a vote allowing construction to proceed. The White House said it was unfortunate to see that some members of the Kennedy family had joined litigation against an arch intended to honor our heroes who rest in Arlington Cemetery. The judiciary should not be abused to politicize a structure designed to unite our nation, White House spokesman Davis R Ingle said in a statement to the BBC.

Traditional games and stickers are helping to drive a bumper year for toy sales, figures show. The data comes ahead of the crucial Christmas run-in for retailers, which peaks at 23 toys sold every second in the UK. The number of toys sold up to October was 17% higher than the same period last year and growth is at a 10-year high, according to research company Circana. The increase comes despite consumers' cost-of-living pressures, and there are signs that some of the biggest growth in sales is for toys priced between £5 and £10. Despite relatively low sales in recent years, the toy sector has been buoyed by sales to kidults.

Poundland and its 11,000 employees are hopeful that the retailer's impending collapse can be delayed to allow time for a last-minute rescue deal. The discount chain has been edging towards administration after being blocked by its owners from accessing cash in its bank accounts. A deadline to secure a buyer for the business is set to expire at midnight, but sources close to the situation have told the BBC that they expect more time will be given, thanks to the release of £10m in funding. A committee of MPs is set to question Gordon Brothers, Poundland's US owners, on Wednesday following accusations that the investment firm hopes to profit from selling off Poundland's 600 stores and stock piecemeal. Gordon Brothers - which bought the chain for just £1 last year - is accused of forcing that outcome by restricting Poundland's access to available cash needed to restock stores and pay wages and rent, ahead of the crucial Christmas trading period.

Anthropic, the AI company behind the Claude chatbot, is planning to raise up to $64bn (£48bn) when it lists its shares for sale on New York's Nasdaq stock exchange. The loss-making company said it will offer its shares for between $70 and $78 each in its initial public offering (IPO), which is expected to go ahead this month. Anthropic is floating at a volatile time for AI businesses - following last week's US midterm elections, the Nasdaq fell sharply on concerns a Democrat-led Congress could slow development of the technology and the buildout of infrastructure such as data centres. There are also wider fears over the billions of dollars being spent on AI and whether it will pay off. Fiona Cincotta, a senior market analyst at City Index, said the amount Anthropic wants to raise is fairly bullish within the volatility [and] concerns towards AI that we've seen in sort of particularly last week.

Sales of tinned food and bottled water jump after'Be Ready' campaign launch Sales of essential goods such as bottled water and canned food soared in the 10 days following the launch of the government's Be Ready emergency preparedness campaign on 22 October, research indicates. Hand sanitiser sales were up 83%, sales of bottled water rose 67% and tinned and jarred goods climbed 37%, according to data from retail research firm Worldpanel by Numerator. The government's public awareness campaign encouraged people to stock up in case of disruption to essential services by severe weather or cyberattacks. However, Worldpanel said that while households were stockpiling essentials, they were not panic buying. The government campaign encouraged people to keep three days-worth of food and water in their homes.

Video games have come a long way when it comes to accessibility and providing ways for players with disabilities to enjoy new releases. But when it comes to seeing themselves represented on screen it's a different story. One big series that's hoping to help change that is Football Manager - the popular simulation that puts players in charge of their own team. The latest edition of the annual franchise allows people to use the game's custom character designer to create a manager who uses a wheelchair. Developer Sports Interactive tells BBC Newsbeat it's part of wider efforts to make the game as inclusive as possible.

Kim Kardashian's Skims offers refunds for $148 advent calendar after backlash Image caption, Kim Kardashian's firm Skims will refund people who bought the advent calendar Kim Kardashian's Skims is offering customers refunds for its $148 (£110) advent calendar which has been widely criticised on social media. The accessories advent calendar promised twelve days of fun surprises but has been mocked online for the quality of its contents, such as hair clips and keychains, with some comparing them to something you would find down the back of a sofa. A spokesperson for Skims has told a number of media outlets for some, the calendar didn't meet expectations and the company has personally contacted every customer to offer a full refund or credit to put towards other products. The BBC has contacted Skims for comment. The shapewear and clothing business was co-founder by Kardashian in 2019 and has made the reality TV star a billionaire, according to Forbes magazine.

California voters have voted to reject a wealth tax on its billionaires. The ballot proposal would have levied a one-time tax on the state's mega wealthy to help fund healthcare. It took nearly a week of counting votes after the midterm election to determine a projection on the measure. There are about 200 billionaires in the state, including Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, reality television star Kim Kardashian and media mogul Oprah Winfrey. Proposition 40 targeted Californians with a wealth of more than $1.1bn (£800m) with a 5% tax on their total wealth, including assets such as shares as well as income.

Mali Osmelak never imagined that selling clothes on Vinted would end with a court claim to recover almost £6,000. She started trading on the platform to earn an income while managing Crohn's disease and caring for her four-year-old daughter. But when she became a professional seller in March, she was unable to complete Vinted's verification process, leaving thousands of pounds inaccessible in her Vinted wallet. After several weeks of trying to resolve the issue, Mali took legal action. Vinted says sellers may be asked to complete verification checks to comply with legal and regulatory requirements and 98% of transactions are completed smoothly without needing help from its support team.