Argentine bombers strike British island beachhead

Argentine bombers attacked the British beachhead in the Falkland Islands early Thursday, the Argentine military high command reported.

The attack came shortly after Argentine forces were poised to launch a major attack on the British. A high command communique said results of the predawn raid by British-built Canberra bombers were being assessed.

A news agency quoting military sources said one of Argentina's three submarines had fired torpedoes at a British ship and then come under attack by the task force. It did not say if the British ship was damaged. The sources said the submarine escaped after remaining submerged on the ocean floor for 70 hours.