Col. Wesley Martin to Newsmax: 'Syria Melting Down — We Need to Stabilize Iraq'

Retired Army Col. Wesley Martin on Wednesday called for an independent investigation into the U.S. airstrike that hit the Doctors Without Borders medical clinic in Afghanistan, telling Newsmax TV that "it was a serious mistake."

They are right. That hospital should never have been bombed," Martin told "Newsmax Now" hosts John Bachman and Miranda Khan in an interview.

"They need to do their after action study: What happened? What went right? What went wrong, and how can we make sure it doesn't happen again?" he said.

Regarding Syria, Martin said that the United States needed to "stabilize Iraq" — and that includes supporting the Shiite and Sunni Muslims.

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"What we need to do first is — and Syria is melting itself down — we need to stabilize Iraq and we need to support the Shiites and the Sunnis," he said. "They're demonstrating in masses in the streets.

"Right now, there's a direct line between Iran, Iraq and Syria — and we gave that line to Iran. We need to break, lower part that bridge.

"Again, I use that term as a metaphor, but we need to go ahead and secure Iraq," Martin said, adding that it would allow the U.S. to help the Free Syrian Army, "if there's anything left of it" by the time President Barack Obama acts and Russian President Vladimir Putin "is done bombing them.

"We need to stabilize Iraq and then we can stabilize Syria."

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