Russian Arms Dealer Viktor Bout 'Back in Business' After Prisoner Swap

Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, known as Russian President Vladimir Putin's "Merchant of Death", is once again selling weapons.

Key Details: Bout is trying to sell weapons to the Houthis, a U.S.-designated terrorist group backed by Iran, two years after being exchanged for WNBA star Brittney Griner in a prisoner swap. Bout, 57, served 12 years of his 25-year prison sentence and is now a local politician in Putin's party. His life reportedly inspired the 2005 Hollywood movie, "Lord of War."

Key Quote: "Viktor Bout has not been in the transportation business for over twenty years," said Steve Zissou, a New York attorney who has represented Bout int he U.S. "But if the Russian government authorized him to facilitate the transfer of arms to one of America’s adversaries, it would be no different than the U.S. government sending arms and weapons of mass destruction to one of Russia’s adversaries as it has sent to Ukraine."

For Context: Though the shipment has not been delivered, the $10 million weapons deal between the Houthis and Moscow indicates a rise in tensions by Putin.

How the Media Covered it: Fox News (Right bias) noted that there have been concerns about Russian retaliation after the U.S. approved Ukraine to employ Western-provided weapons against Russia. The Daily Beast (Left Bias) noted that the Houthis have attacked dozens of commercial and merchant ships in the Red Sea in protest to U.S. government involvement in the Israel-Hamas war.