The Office of Military Cooperation , just one and a half blocks from the embassy , required evacuation . Despite its proximity to the embassy , an armed convoy was needed to evacuate persons trapped there by the unrest . A convoy of vehicles with several Marines and SEALs left the embassy at 8 : 47 and returned ten minutes later with 22 persons from the OMC ( four Americans , a Filipino , and 17 Kenyans ) . This was the only excursion outside the embassy by the security detail . Throughout the day , foreign diplomats contacted the embassy desiring to be evacuated ; the US welcomed these requests , but required all of them to find their own transportation to the embassy .