Our partner the BBC has gotten its hands on a secret NATO report on the state of the Taliban. It shows Pakistan's security services are directly assisting the Taliban in Afghanistan and know where senior Taliban leaders are hiding. Joining us now is Bilal Sarwary, correspondent for our partner the BBC.

Earlier this month we reported the U.S. was taking steps to talk to the Taliban in Qatar. Plans have been agreed to set up some kind of public affairs office but that move did not play well with the President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai. And so he's jump-started the talks by attempting to create his own dialogue with the Taliban. 

On Thursday a video showing four U.S. Marines purportedly urinating on the corpses of three dead Taliban fighters went viral on the internet. Defense secretary Leon Panetta called the behavior “utterly deplorable” and Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai decried the video as “completely inhumane.” The video comes at a tense time, as the U.S. tries to foster peace talks between the Taliban and Karzai's government.

On Tuesday, after months of denying it was interested in participating in formal talks to end the war in Afghanistan, the Taliban indicated it would consider opening a political office in Qatar. A political office would give mediators from the U.S. a legitimate contact for Taliban members. No details have been given about when these negotiations would begin, or what would be bargained for. This step also implies that there will continue to be some kind of Taliban presence inside Afghanistan.

Almost 1,000 delegates from Afghanistan, NATO, and neighboring countries met in Bonn, Germany to discuss the future of Afghanistan. The talks happened in the context of the planned withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan by 2014. The meeting had a sense of deja vu; 10 years ago, in this same city, in the same hotel, Afghan leaders met to discuss the future of Afghanistan. Back then, it was just months after the 9/11 attacks, the American-led invasion of Afghanistan, and the fall of the Taliban. 

Warren Weinstein is a veteran aid worker who was kidnapped by armed men in Lahore almost four months ago. Ayman al-Zawahiri and the Pakistan branch of al-Qaeda have claimed responsibility for this, and created a list of demands for his release. Among them are the end of U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, as well as the release of members of Osama bin Laden's family. However, it remains unclear if al-Qaeda actually has Weinstein in their custody.

Over the weekend two attacks in Afghanistan proved some of the deadliest in that country in over two months. In Kabul, a bombing left 17 people dead, and some officials pointing beyond the Taliban and towards a growing threat: the Haqqani network, which is based in neighboring Pakistan. That and this morning's other top headlines. 

The increasingly fraught relationship between the United States and Pakistan is under even greater scrutiny after new revelations showing Pakistan has continually supported and trained the Taliban in Afghanistan for the last decade. A BBC investigation alleges that Pakistan has secretly armed and trained the enemy in Afghanistan while professing to be a U.S. ally. David Loyn, correspondent for the BBC, filed this report.

Siraj Haqqani, a key leader of the Afghan militant group known as the Haqqani network, told the BBC over the weekend it was not responsible for the assassination of Burhanuddin Rabbani, the head of Afghanistan's High Peace Council. The Haqqanis, who in recent weeks have been blamed for an attack on the U.S. embassy in Kabul, have been described as "the Sopranos of the Afghanistan war" by The New York Times. The U.S. has long accused the Haqqanis of working for Pakistan's spy agency, the ISI.

A suicide bomber in Afghanistan on Tuesday killed Burhanuddin Rabbani, former president of Afghanistan and leader of the High Peace Council. Rabbani was in the process of negotiating an end to the war with the Taliban. The assassination is a devastating blow to the Afghan peace process, and the future of security in the region.

After 20 hours of fighting, Afghan forces killed the last insurgents who carried out a complex attack against the U.S. embassy, NATO headquarters, and police buildings in Kabul that started Tuesday. Seven people, including four policemen, died, and nine insurgents were killed. The Taliban initially took credit for the attack, though an insurgent group called the Haqqani network is believed to be responsible. The attack comes as the U.S. has begun to withdraw troops from the region. The attack still left many terrified, and wondering whether the Afghan government will be able to secure their stronghold within the capital city.

American officials have confirmed a rocket attack on the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan this morning. Authorities say at least four Afghans are wounded, but there have not been any reports of deaths. Ray Rivera of The New York Times reports on the latest from on the ground in Kabul.

The Taliban is taking responsibility for coordinated attack on the U.S. embassy and the headquarters for NATO's International Assistance Security Force in Kabul, Afghanistan this morning. Insurgents are said to be firing rockets from a half-completed building near the embassy. On its website Tuesday morning, the Taliban ran a statement saying "Operation Martyrdom" had begun. Bilal Sawary of the BBC reports on the latest from Kabul.

Federal authorities are still on alert after news of a "specific, credible" terrorist threat for New York City and the District of Columbia broke on Thursday night, as the tenth anniversary of September 11 approached. The memorial service at Ground Zero still went on as promised Sunday, with thousands of people coming to the site to pay tribute to those who died and those who survived in the 9/11 attacks. Meanwhile, on Saturday the Taliban took credit for a suicide bomb attack on NATO forces in eastern Afghanistan, injuring at least 80 people.

We're talking about the tenth anniversary of 9/11 all this week. And while we’re remembering those we’ve lost, we’re also analyzing the tragedy's aftermath. A new Frontline documentary and investigative book chronicle the proliferation of covert operations and government organizations that began cropping up in the wake of 9/11. Funding for counter-terrorism programs grew exponentially after 9/11. In the documentary, then-White House counter terrorism czar Richard Clarke remembers: "President Bush said to us, in the basement of the White House on the night of 9/11, you have everything you need. And that was true, because as soon as we went to the Congress, they said 'just tell us what you need.' Blank check."

It has been a tragic couple of weeks for U.S. troops in Afghanistan. What is the status of the situation in Afghanistan? Has the Taliban retreated and when can U.S. troops withdraw? Our partners at the BBC talk with U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker about America's long-standing involvement in the region and how we can avoid making the same mistakes that led to 9/11.

The Taliban has claimed responsibility for a helicopter crash on Saturday, which killed 30 American troops in the deadliest day ever for U.S. forces in Afghanistan. The attack took place in the Tangi Valley of Wardak Province, to the west of Kabul, and illustrates how the insurgency is growing from its traditional strongholds and edging toward the capital city.

Ahmed Wali Karzai, Afghan President Hamid Karzai's half-brother and head of Afghanistan's Kandahar provincial council, was killed early Tuesday morning at his home. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the assassination, though their claims remain unconfirmed. Karzai was a powerful figure in Kandahar and his death may result in an unpredictable struggle for power, impacting U.S. goals in the region.

The Hotel Interncontinental in Kabul, Afghanistan was attacked by gunmen and suicide bombers yesterday. Gun fire was exchanged between the terrorists and police force for many hours, and ended with NATO helicopters shooting and killing three militants on the hotel's roof. The identity of the terrorists has not been confirmed yet, but many believe the Taliban are responsible.

Last night, at least nine suicide bombers stormed into the Intercontinental Hotel—one of the most premier hotels in Kabul, Afghanistan—in a six-hour attack that early reports say left at least 21 people dead. NATO forces ended the attack by killing three of the bombers. Alissa J. Rubin, a reporter for the New York Times, told us the attackers were anti-government insurgents.

The Takeaway spoke with freelance journalist Bette Dam, who was at the Intercontinental Hotel and spoke of the situation on the ground (her audio above and below). We also spoke with journalist Matthieu Aikins.  

Freelance journalist Matthieu Aikins reports from Kabul: 

Freelance journalist Bette Dam reports on the scene at the Intercontinental Hotel: