Marines poised for mission in Egypt

Tom Vanden Brook | USA TODAY

A contingent of the Marines' new fast reaction force for rescue missions in Africa has been moved to Sigonella, Italy, for possible action in Egypt.

"This is certainly one of the possibilities of the (task force)," Marine Capt. Eric Flanagan, a spokesman based at the Pentagon, said in an email. "The unit is always on standby with a short tether."

With Egypt teetering on anarchy, the 500-member Marine unit could be called on to swoop in and help secure the U.S. Embassy in Cairo.

The Egyptian military has given President Mohammed Morsi an ulitmatum: yield to demands from millions of protesters or step aside. It's unclear what Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected president, would have to do to satisfy the demands of protesters or the military. His Islamist Muslim Brotherhood movement has become increasingly unpopular in Egypt as security and the economy decay there.

The Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force for Crisis Response was formed after the attack on the U.S. embassy and a CIA outpost in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012. Four Americans were killed in that attack, including the ambassador.