A rogue US Army staff sergeant has been accused of killing 16 villagers in Kandahar, Afghanistan early Sunday morning. The soldier reportedly went from house to house shooting victims which include nine children and three women. The soldier, who acted alone, is in custody at a NATO base in Afghanistan. After weeks of violence due to American soldiers burning the Koran, many fear the repercussions this shooting will have with the position of the Taliban and US-Afghan relations.

After The Takeaway this morning, Host Celeste Headlee looks beyond current politics in Washington to bring our attention to another important story: the assassination of Ghulam Haidar Hameedi, the mayor of Kandahar. The death of Hameedi, who was killed by a suicide bomber with a bomb hidden in his turban, marks the third high-profile assassination in Kandahar in less than a month. Celeste reflects on the nature of public service and Hameedi's choice to leave the United States, where he worked as an accountant for 30 years, to return to Afghanistan to serve his country.

Ghulam Haidar Hameedi, the mayor of Kandahar, has been killed in a suicide bombing. The attack comes just two weeks after Amhad Wali Karzai, the half-brother of the Afghan president and one of the most powerful men in the country, was killed in the same city. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Taliban is denying responsibility for a suicide bomb that took the lives of at least four people this morning at the funeral of Ahmed Wali Karzai, the half-brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and a powerful leader in Kandahar. The BBC's Bilal Sawary is on the ground in Kandahar and has the latest updates on this developing story.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gen. David Petraeus on Wednesday defended President Obama's plan to begin withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan in July of 2011. Gen. Petraeus faced tough questions from lawmakers, including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) who worry that Afghanistan will view our drawdown as abandonment. "We are sounding an uncertain trumpet to our friends and to our enemies. They believe we are leaving as of July 2011," McCain said.

UPDATED 5:45 p.m.

Alex Goldmark here. 

We're monitoring the media blitz of Rep. Eric Massa tonight as he heads for the cable news channels to defend himself against ethics accusations. And also to throw a few more parting shots at President Obama's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel. It's an inside story for Washington, but some valuable insights might come out on how work gets done in the Obama White House. Our partners at The New York Times are covering that here. 

Also, it is python hunting season in Florida. We'll bring you a sharp shooter.