Speaking to reporters on Thursday before traveling to Texas, President Joe Biden said that he didn't expect a pause in fighting Israel and Hamas to go into effect by Monday.

"Hope springs eternal," Biden said, adding: "I was on the telephone with the people in the region. Probably not by Monday, but I’m hopeful."

Biden's comments came hours after witnesses said Israeli troops fired on a crowd of Palestinians racing to pull food off an aid convoy in Gaza City, killing more than 100 and bringing the death toll in the monthslong war to more than 30,000.

When asked if he was worried the latest incident would complicate the peace negotiations, Biden replied: "I know it will."

The White House later Thursday released readouts of Biden's calls with the leaders of Egypt and Qatar, two key mediators in the talks between Israel and Hamas working to negotiate a six-week cease-fire that will also lead to the release of hundreds of hostages. Mediators hope to reach an agreement before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan starts around March 10. But so far, Israel and Hamas have remained far apart in public on their demands.

In his call with both Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, Biden discussed the "tragic and alarming incident" in Gaza. "Both leaders grieved the loss of civilian lives and agreed that this incident underscored the urgency of bringing negotiations to a close as soon as possible and expanding the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza," according to a White House readout of both calls.

Israel said many of the dead were trampled in a chaotic stampede for the food aid and that its troops only fired when they felt endangered by the crowd.

Military officials said the pre-dawn convoy of 30 trucks driving to northern Gaza were met by huge crowds of people trying to grab the aid they were carrying. Dozens of Palestinians were killed in the stampede and some were run over by the trucks as the drivers tried to get away, said.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, Israel's chief military spokesperson, said in a video statement that after the aid convoy passed through the Kerem Shalom border crossing into Gaza, "thousands of Gazans descended on the trucks."

"Some began violently pushing and even trampling the other Gazans to death, looting the humanitarian supplies" Hagari said. "The unfortunate incident resulted in dozens of Gazans killed and injured."

Aid groups say it has become nearly impossible to deliver supplies in most of Gaza because of the difficulty of coordinating with the Israeli military, ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of public order, with crowds of desperate people overwhelming aid convoys. The U.N. says a quarter of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians face starvation; around 80% have fled their homes. 

Hagari said that Israel has been conducting humanitarian operations for the last four nights without any incident. The aid, he said, was coordinated by Israel to get to the people of Gaza.

Israeli troops guarding the area fired warning shots toward the crowd because they felt endangered, he said. "The tanks that were there cautiously tried to disperse the mob with a few warning shots. When hundreds became thousands, the tank commander decided to retreat."

“We didn’t open fire on those seeking aid," Hagari said. "Contrary to the accusations, we didn’t open fire on a humanitarian aid convoy, not from the air and not from land. We secured it so it could reach northern Gaza."

"No IDF strike was conducted on this aid," he emphasized. "Let me repeat: No IDF strike was conducted on this aid. On the contrary, the IDF was conducting a humanitarian operation, that's why we were there."

At least 112 people were killed, Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said. The Health Ministry described it as a “massacre.”

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan accused Israel of targeting civilians in the incident. In separate statements, they called for increased safe passages for humanitarian aid. They also urged the international community to take decisive action to pressure Israel to abide by international law and to reach an agreement for an immediate cease-fire.

The U.N. Security Council scheduled emergency closed consultations on the killings for later Thursday at the request of Algeria, the Arab representative on the 15-nation body.

In a statement condemning Thursday’s attack, Hamas said it would not allow the negotiations for a cease-fire “to be a cover for the enemy to continue its crimes.”

The Health Ministry said the Palestinian death toll from the war has climbed to 30,035, with another 70,457 wounded. The agency does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its figures but says women and children make up around two-thirds of those killed.

The Hamas attack into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that ignited the war killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and the militants seized around 250 hostages. Hamas and other militants are still holding around 100 hostages and the remains of about 30 more, after releasing most of the other captives during a November cease-fire.