Not a proxy war, more proxy bragging.

"Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group said it attacked two plants at the heart of Saudi Arabia's oil industry on Saturday, knocking out half the Kingdom's output, in a move expected to send oil prices soaring and increase tensions in the Middle East." "The attacks will cut the Kingdom's output by 5.7 million barrels per day (bpd), according to a statement from state-run oil company Saudi Aramco, or more than 5% of global supply." "And while Aramco is confident that it can recover quickly, if it can't, however, the world could face a production shortage of as much as 150 MM barrels per month. An outcome which could send oil prices into the triple digits," wrote M Kern. Oil industry executives are predicting a rise of $10 per barrel if supplies are not restored quickly. Despite such predictions, oil prices have actually fallen a few cents today. Claiming responsibility for the attack, a Houthi spokesman said, "We promise the Saudi regime that the next operation will be wider and more painful if the blockade and aggression continues." Dismissing Houthi claims, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted, "Tehran is behind nearly 100 attacks on Saudi Arabia while Rouhani and Zarif pretend to engage in diplomacy. Amid all the calls for de-escalation, Iran has now launched an unprecedented attack on the world's energy supply. There is no evidence the attacks came from Yemen." He may have a point. The Houthis control an area on the west coast of Yemen bordering the Red Sea and including the capital city of Sana'a, whereas Abqaiq, the site of the attacks, is near the east coast of Saudi Arabia, about midway between al Hofuf and Dhahran, over 1,000 miles from the Houthis. Thus, it is opposite to Iran on the Persian Gulf. Iran has much to gain from this attack. Sanctions by the US have slashed oil output from around 2.5 million bpd in April 2018 to around 400,000 bpd today. Europe has created a parallel system called Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) which is a kind of barter system to trade with Iran. By avoiding any currency this protects European banks from US sanctions. Despite this, trade with Iran has fallen sharply and its economy is contracting, with its currency the rial falling from 30,000 to the US dollar in 2016 to 120,000 today. From switching off tracking devices to offloading to other vessels while out at sea, Iran is using every trick to sell its oil, but it must be having to take a huge cut in the price. Any rise in the price of oil will help its economy. By not attacking US or NATO vessels and by giving bragging rights to the Houthis Iran can deny any responsibility. Any loss of face for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the real power in the Kingdom, is a moral victory for Iran. A kind of stalemate. Over to the US.