US Deploys Marines to Yemen

US Marine Corps/Pfc. Sean Dennison(WASHINGTON) -- Pentagon spokesman George Little announced Friday morning that the United States has sent a Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team (FAST) platoon to the U.S. Embassy in Yemen.   

Little says they are now on the ground.  He said the deployment “is partly in part in response to the events of the past two days in Yemen, but it’s also in part, a precautionary measure.” Little said he has heard of no plans to send Marines to other countries in the region.

This is the second FAST platoon to be dispatched to a Middle Eastern country this week. Another 50 Marines were sent to Tripoli after the attack on the consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Little wouldn’t confirm if the Marines had come from Bahrain where a FAST team is always pre-positioned.

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