Eugene V. Debs sentenced to 10 years in prison for speech opposing US entry in WWI
Crisis response activity continued elsewhere as well. At 0200 hours local time, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta convenes a series of meetings in the Pentagon with senior officials Including General Dempsey and General Ham. They discuss additional response options for Benghazi and for the potential outbreak of further violence throughout the region, particularly in Tunis, Tunisia; Tripoli, Libya; Cairo, Egypt; and Sana'a, Yemen. During these meetings, Secretary Panetta directs (provides verbal authorization) the following actions: 1) A Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team (FAST) platoon, stationed in Rota, Spain, is directed to prepare to deploy to Benghazi, and a second FAST platoon, also stationed in Rota, Spain, is directed to prepare to deploy to the Embassy in Tripoli; 2) a EUCOM special operations force, which was training in Central Europe, is directed to prepare to deploy to an intermediate staging base in southern Europe (this force is later reported to be Company C, 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group); and 3) a special operations force based in the United States is directed to prepare to deploy to an intermediate staging base in southern Europe (this force is later reported to have been a detachment from 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment Delta or "Delta Force"). During this period, actions were verbally conveyed from the Pentagon to the affected Combatant Commands in order to expedite movement of forces upon receipt of formal authorization. At 0239 hours local time, as ordered by Secretary Panetta, the National Military Command Center transmitted formal authorization for the 2 Marine Corps FAST platoons, and associated equipment, to prepare to deploy and for the US European Command special operations force, and associated equipment, to move to an intermediate staging base in southern Europe. At 0253 hours local time, as ordered by Secretary Panetta, the National Military Command Center transmitted formal authorization to deploy a special operations force, and associated equipment, from the United States to an intermediate staging base in southern Europe. At 0500 hours local time, a second, unmanned, unarmed surveillance aircraft was also directed to relieve the initial asset still on station over Benghazi.