The White House said Tuesday it does not believe Israel defied President Joe Biden’s warning when it seized control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt.

John Kirby, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, also said the U.S. is optimistic Israel and Hamas can still reach an agreement on a temporary cease-fire.

Israel’s 401st Brigade took “operational control” of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing early Tuesday, the military said. The action came a day after Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call not to launch a large military offensive in Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are sheltering.

Kirby told reporters Israel has assured the U.S. that the operation is “of limited scope, scale and duration, and aimed at cutting off Hamas' ability to ship arms across the Rafah border.”

“We've been very consistent about our concerns of a major ground operation in Gaza that would put at great risk the refugees that are still there, and nothing's changed about that,” Kirby said. “The Israelis have told us … that that's not what this is.”

But Kirby said the U.S. is monitoring Israel’s operation in Rafah closely.

Representatives from Israel and Hamas, along with U.S., Egyptian and Qatari officials, were meeting in Cairo on Tuesday for another round of negotiations toward a pause in the 7-month-old war. 

On Monday, Hamas said it accepted a deal, but Israel insisted the agreement did not meet its core demands.

Kirby said, “A close assessment of the two sides' positions suggests that they should be able to close the remaining gaps.”

He added the U.S. will “do everything we can to support that process and achieve that outcome.”

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have spent months trying to broker an agreement on a cease-fire and the release of the estimated 100 hostages and remains of 30 others still held by Hamas.

Kirby also said the U.S. is working to ensure the uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza and is urging Israel to immediately reopen the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings for assistance.

Israel closed the Kerem Shalom crossing, where the Gazan, Israeli and Egyptian borders meet, after a Hamas rocket attack Sunday killed four Israeli soldiers.

Kirby said Netanyahu has committed to reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing at Biden’s request. 

“We need to see it happen soon,” Kirby said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.