Iranian sources said that Tehran ordered the Houthis last week to intensify attacks on Saudi Arabia and promised to provide more funding, weapons and senior officers, according to Iran International

The distinction that has mattered in past episodes is the target set: strikes on Saudi territory historically carry escalation risk toward Riyadh's oil infrastructure and the Saudi-Iran detente track, whereas Red Sea maritime attacks transmit through shipping insurance, rerouting around the Cape and tanker and container freight rates, with the crude risk premium tied to whether energy supply itself is threatened. Reports of senior IRGC officers embedded in a campaign have in the past preceded more sophisticated targeting rather than higher volume alone. Sourcing via an opposition-leaning outlet warrants the usual caution applied to single-channel regional attribution. The tells in comparable episodes have been Saudi and US responses, any move on diplomatic channels, and whether attack claims shift from shipping toward land-based energy facilities.