Did US Ambassador to Egypt order Marines not to carry "live ammunition"? Did US really have 48 hour notice of attacks?

This claim seems to be the result of statements from Marines themselves:

Ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson “did not permit U.S. Marine guards to carry live ammunition,” according to multiple reports on U.S. Marine Corps blogs spotted by Nightwatch. “She neutralized any U.S. military capability that was dedicated to preserve her life and protect the US Embassy.”

Time magazine’s Battleland blog also reported Thursday that “senior U.S. officials late Wednesday declined to discuss in detail the security at either Cairo or Benghazi, so answers may be slow in coming.”

If true, the reports indicate that Patterson shirked her obligation to protect U.S. interests, Nightwatch states.

“She did not defend U.S. sovereign territory and betrayed her oath of office,” the report states. “She neutered the Marines posted to defend the embassy, trusting the Egyptians over the Marines.”

Wouldn't you think that a lot of extra security precautions would have been taken on the 9/11 anniversary?  Presumably this would be done so as to reduce the probability that a Marine would accidentally shot an Egyptian, though that some would believe a Marine was likely to do that would probably have an irrational fear of guns.  In any case, even if that turns out to be false statements from Marines an even worse story comes from the UK Independent:

According to senior diplomatic sources, the US State Department had credible information 48 hours before mobs charged the consulate in Benghazi, and the embassy in Cairo, that American missions may be targeted, but no warnings were given for diplomats to go on high alert and "lockdown", under which movement is severely restricted.

Mr Stevens had been on a visit to Germany, Austria and Sweden and had just returned to Libya when the Benghazi trip took place with the US embassy's security staff deciding that the trip could be undertaken safely.

Eight Americans, some from the military, were wounded in the attack which claimed the lives of Mr Stevens, Sean Smith, an information officer, and two US Marines. All staff from Benghazi have now been moved to the capital, Tripoli, and those whose work is deemed to be non-essential may be flown out of Libya. . . .

Or this story from the Jerusalem Post:

Egypt's General Intelligence Service warned that a jihadi group is planning to launch terrorist attacks against the US and Israeli embassies in Cairo, according to a report Tuesday by Egypt Independent, citing a secret letter obtained by Al-Masry Al-Youm.

According to the report, the attack is being planned by Global Jihad, the group suspected of killing 16 Egyptian border guards in Sinai on August 5.

Al-Masry Al-Youm reportedly obtained a copy of the September 4 letter, sent to all Egyptian security sectors, warning that Sinai- and Gaza-based Global Jihad cells were planning attacks on the two embassies. . . .

UPDATE: I also received this information from someone who has been an embassy Marine guard.

MSGs are armed with sidearms.  Nowadays they MAY have a few shotguns or rifles, but those will be secured unless the end of the world is coming.  And the State Department discourages shooting back.   THEY DO NOT have M60s, M240s, M2s, or ANY explosive weapons.  Were the Marines denied ammunition?  I doubt it.  But they were UNDOUBTEDLY under STRICT RULES OF ENGAGEMENT to not lose a round outside the building (i.e. outside nominal U.S. territory) . . .

Under the Vienna Convention, host nation security forces are responsible for protecting the integrity of ALL foreign diplomatic missions within the host nation.  Theoretically, when host nation intelligence assets determine a threat is developing, or the State Department informs the host nation Foreign Ministry that a credible threat is developing, THEY'RE supposed to beef up external security.
Supposed to.  And if you think Egyptian and/or Libyan intelligence didn't know what was brewing, I have a unilateral disarmament treaty I'd like to sell you (after all, that IS a State Department function: peace through a position of weakness, with kind words and a bazillion dollar foreign aid check). . . .

 Important UPDATE: Even CNN has this update.

Three days before the deadly assault on the United States consulate in Libya, a local security official says he met with American diplomats in the city and warned them about deteriorating security.
Jamal Mabrouk, a member of the February 17th Brigade, told CNN that he and a battalion commander had a meeting about the economy and security.
He said they told the diplomats that the security situation wasn't good for international business.
"The situation is frightening, it scares us," Mabrouk said they told the U.S. officials. He did not say how they responded. . . . .

  Libyan President also says that this attack wasn't the result of the movie.

Libya President Mohamed Yousef El-Magariaf said Sunday that 50 arrests have been made in connection with last week's "preplanned" attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi that left U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead.

"The way these perpetrators acted and moved -- I think we, and they're choosing the specific date for this so-called demonstration, I think we have no, this leaves us with no doubt that this was pre-planned, determined," Magariaf said on CBS's "Face the Nation." . . .

From ABC's This Week: 

RICE: First of all, there are Marines in some places around the world. There are not Marines in every facility. That depends on the circumstances. That depends on the requirements. Our presence in Tripoli, as in Benghazi, is relatively new, as you will recall. We've been back post-revolution only for a matter of months. . . .

RADDATZ: I'm pretty sure there are Marines in Paris. Why weren't they in Tripoli? And I think that's a question the State Department is looking at right now. And Benghazi, I think you had 25 or 30 people in the entire consulate. How many of those really were security? They overran the perimeter so quickly and were able to get to that main building so fast, that is a huge question. . . .

Apparently, the US Department of State wasn't too concerned about anything happening on 9/11.