They're profiteers off deaths, abuse and repression of people, plain and simple. The whole lot of these folks should be in jail.

Yes.

However, the cynic in me suggests that those who sell weapons to nation-states tend to receive protection from nation-states.

Which percentage of their customers will not be pissed off enough to watch them burn over sticking their neck out to help, though? Probably only the most corrupt, if an appropriate amount of funds are dispersed to support rapid processing.