Hmm, I hadn't heard about this at all before today--was it in the news because the ship was heading towards Gaza with clear plans to challenge the blockade? Or was it actually sitting in the Mediterranean trying to convince the Israelis to make an exception to (or drop) the blockade? I'm guessing it's the former?

Oh, I guess it left Cyprus yesterday, so "days" is an exaggeration. I heard about it on NPR while it was en route. I don't completely know the extent of the communication between the Marmara and the IDF prior to the helicopter boarding, but based on the IDF video I'm guessing the Marmara wasn't really interested in talking to the IDF.