Given the relatively low costs of drones -- already far cheaper than the costs of a fighter jet and of training a fighter jet pilot -- armed drones will play a key role in future conflicts.

CNN: A dangerous new world of drones

Mr. Wicker is a low-key, second-term senator who is a member of the budget and armed services committees.

WSJ: Suspected Poisoned Letter Sent to Senator

Then came the clashes between rival groups of Malian soldiers in Bamako - a chilling reminder of the chaos still seething within the armed forces - and at the weekend, the first signs of a serious counter-attack by the jihadists in the key northern town of Gao.

BBC: Attacks jolt Mali and France out of complacency