WASHINGTON - The UN Security Council scheduled urgent consultations Tuesday on an Iranian ballistic missile test at the request of the United States.

The U.S. Mission to the United Nations said it wanted the UN's most powerful body to discuss Sunday's launch of a medium-range missile.

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said earlier that he did not know the "exact nature" of the test and expected to have more information later.

A defence official said the missile test ended with a "failed" re-entry into the earth's atmosphere. The official had no other details, including the type of missile. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Iran is the subject of a United Nations Security Council resolution prohibiting tests of ballistic missiles designed to deliver a nuclear warhead. As part of the 2015 nuclear deal, the UN ban was prolonged by eight years, although Iran has flaunted the restriction.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the U.S. was looking into whether the ballistic missile test violates the U.S. Security Council resolution.

"When actions are taken that violate or are inconsistent with the resolution, we will act to hold Iran accountable and urge other countries to do so as well," Toner said.

Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned Iran for the missile test.

"No longer will Iran be given a pass for its repeated ballistic missile violations, continued support of terrorism, human rights abuses and other hostile activities that threaten international peace and security," Corker, a Republican from Tennessee, said in a written statement.

Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen, meanwhile, claimed a successful missile strike against a warship in the Red Sea belonging to the Saudi-led coalition that is fighting alongside Yemen's internationally recognized government. Video footage shown on the rebels' al-Masirah television on Monday shows a warship being hit and a fire on board starting as a man not shown in the video shouts the rebels' trademark chant of "Allahu akbar (God is greatest), death to America, death to Israel, a curse on the Jews and victory for Islam."

The media arm of the Shiite rebels, also known as the Houthis, said the vessel was believed to belong to the Saudi Arabian navy.