Guest: Eric Schmidt, the New York Times

Defense Secretary Robert Gates was recently in Kabul, Afghanistan, addressing growing anger from people who believe the United States is responsible for civilian deaths in the country. Earlier this month, a strike on the western province of Herat led to seven civilian deaths, according to the United States — as many as 90, according to the United Nations and Afghanistan's government. Gates is now traveling to London to push a plan where U.S. Central Command, not NATO, would lead forces in the fight against the Taliban.

Today, the United States is reporting that four soldiers and an Afghan national have been killed in a bomb blast in Afghanistan. It happened as U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates was visiting the country. He was there to meet President Hamid Karzai and express regret over recent civilian casualties at the hands of international forces.

Israel's ruling Kadima Party is holding an internal election today to choose a new leader. The party's previous leader, Ehud Olmert, announced his resignation over allegations of corruption and bribery. The two leading candidates are Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, a relative moderate, and Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, a hard-liner and former general.

Israel’s ruling Kadima party is holding a historic election Wednesday to select a new leader. The current frontrunner in the polls is Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. She could replace the current party chief, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who faces corruption allegations and sharp criticism of his handling of the 2006 war with Hezbollah in Lebanon. If elected, Livni would be Israel’s first female leader in more than 30 years. She faces a challenge from Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz.

In 2001, after the fall of the Taliban, experts warned of a nightmare scenario. They projected that the Taliban and al-Qaida would leave Afghanistan and infiltrate neighboring Pakistan. There, they would find a relative sanctuary where they could establish new command centers, out of America’s reach. With the U.S. military largely committed in Iraq, that scenario seems to be coming true. Frontline’s senior producer Martin Smith joins The Takeaway to discuss the latest developments along the Afghanistan and Pakistan border.

Pakistan’s Tribal regions are packed with Taliban and Al Qaeda militants. NYT reporter Dexter Filkins slipped inside and met with Taliban leadership. We’ll talk to him about militant power, and whether Pakistan is really fighting them.

Guest: Steven Farrell, The New York Times, in Baghdad, Iraq

Guest: Crispin Thorold, BBC correspondent in Baghdad

Guest: Jonathan Marcus, BBC diplomatic correspondent

Guest: Sean Corcoran, WCAI, a public radio station serving the Cape Cod region

Tributes by friends and relatives of Paul Conlon and Daniel McGuire, both of Mashpee, Massachusetts, killed last week in Afghanistan and Iraq, respectively. Interviews by Sean Corcoran, Senior Reporter at WCAI, the Cape and ...

The war in Iraq has caused a refugee crisis. Nearly two million Iraqis have been displaced within Iraq, another two million have been driven outside of the country. Nour al-Khal, a translator who survived being shot in Basra, joins The Takeaway to discuss life after Iraq, and the lives of those who cannot leave the war-torn country.

CIA officials have determined that members of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), provided direct support for last month's bombing of India's embassy in Kabul. American officials say this is the clearest evidence that Pakistani intelligence officers are actively undermining American efforts to combat militants in Afghanistan.

The first American war crimes tribunal since World War II is taking place in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On trial is Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Ahmed Hamdan. Defense lawyers say the poor Yemeni took the job only for its $200-a-month salary, but prosecutors say Hamdan was a willing recruit, aiding al-Qaida in its militancy efforts.

Guest: Rob Watson, BBC defense correspondent

Obama’s first major trip overseas next week is drawing major media attention, though the itinerary is still a mystery. Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories, Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, have been mentioned as possible stops, and three TV networks — CBS, ABC and NBC — have requested that their nightly news anchors tag along.

This morning, Israeli forensic specialists confirmed the remains of two soldiers handed over by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to be Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. The capture of the two men in 2006 prompted a violent month-long clash. With the bodies are identified, Israel has agreed to return five prisoners including Samir Kantar.

Guest: Steven Lee Myers, The New York Times

Guest: John Leyne, BBC World Service

In Spain today, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah is leading an unusual religious gathering. He's called together leaders from the world's major religions — Islam, Christianity, Judaism — not to debate hot-button religious issues, but to find common ground for confronting humanitarian crises.