An unknown hacker has hijacked the website of the Falkland Islands' main newspaper, posting reasons why the disputed islands should belong to Argentina rather than Britain.

The article on the website of the English-language Penguin News weekly newspaper was posted in Spanish with a light blue and white background - the colours of the Argentine flag. It was removed after a few hours.

The islands belong to Argentina because "we inherited them from Spain and the River Plate vice-royalty."

The hacker also noted that "Argentina is the nearest country," and that navigators working for Spain in the 16th century first visited the islands, long before England.

The islands also are part of Argentina's continental shelf, according to the posting.

"The first children born in the Malvinas were/are Argentines," it read, referring to the islands by their name in Spanish.

The British-owned and potentially oil-rich archipelago, which comprise the East Falkland, the West Falkland and about 200 smaller islands, are some 450 kilometres from the Argentine coastline.

The article was posted following a fracas triggered by Argentine restrictions on ships traveling through its waters to the Falklands, home to 3,000 islanders, 1,000 British soldiers and 500,000 sheep.

Argentina lost a short but bitter war over the south Atlantic islands with Britain in 1982.

-AFP