Iranian state television has said that an oil tanker was sinking after it was struck while attempting to pass through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports.

“The fate of the offending oil tanker that was struck while attempting to illegally pass through the Strait of Hormuz is that it is now sinking,” state TV reported, without elaborating.

It carried footage showing heavy black smoke emanating from the burning tanker at sea.

The strait carries a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil and a fifth of all liquified natural gas.