On May 1, a group of U.S. Navy SEALs entered Pakistan in Blackhawk helicopters and raided a compound in Abottobad, where they found and killed the world's most wanted terrorist, Osama bin Laden. An extraordinary story has now emerged of what is perhaps the most successful covert operation in U.S. history. 

Nicholas Schmidle discusses the two years he spent in Pakistan. To Live or to Perish Forever explores the country’s short but turbulent history and reveals the two Pakistans the author discovered: one beautiful and friendly, the other frightening and deadly.

Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud was reportedly killed by a U.S. missile strike on Wednesday, but some members of the Pakistani Taliban are insisting that their leader is still alive. Nicholas Schmidle, of New America Foundation, and Christine Fair with the RAND Corporation sift through the conflicting information.

A chilling video was released last weekend of the first U.S. soldier, Army Private Bowe R. Bergdahl, to be captured by the Taliban since the war started in Afghanistan. The 23-year-old was serving with an infantry regiment in Eastern Afghanistan when he was captured. Nicholas Schmidle, a fellow at the New America Foundation and author of "To Live or To Perish Forever: Two Tumultuous Years Inside Pakistan" joins The Takeaway to talk about what this video means. And from Kabul, Afghanistan, Wall Street Journal reporter Anand Gopal also joins the discussion.

You can watch a clip of the video below.

President Barack Obama unveils his Afghan war strategy today. Officials say the President plans to send up to 4,000 more troops and will start a surge of civilian trainers on top of the 17,000 combat troops he's already ordered. The plan includes no time line for withdrawal of troops. For more we turn to Paul Hughes, senior program officer for the Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention. He served as a colonel in the U.S. Army and as a senior military fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies. Also joining us is Nicholas Schmidle, a fellow with the New America Foundation and the author of the forthcoming book, To Live or to Perish Forever: Two Tumultuous Years in Pakistan