“The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades can fire [as many missiles] on Tel Aviv in 51 minutes as it fired in 51 days [in 2014],” proclaimed Yahya Sinwar, Hamas' leader in the Gaza Strip, on Oct. 24.

Several days earlier, in a meeting with youths in Gaza, Sinwar had waxed enthusiastic, stating, “We are not discussing recognizing Israel, but destroying it and when that will happen.” A few hours after journalists disseminated his words, his bureau issued a clarification, saying that he had not actually meant “destruction.” Journalists who attended the meeting told Al-Monitor that Sinwar had indeed uttered those very words to the sound of audience applause.

A Fatah member in Gaza told Al-Monitor that after Fatah and Hamas entered reconciliation talks, Hamas leaders began issuing frequent statements about their organization's military strength. He cited two reasons for this. The first is to show Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that Hamas has no intention of disarming. The second is to prove to Iran that despite the reconciliation, they have no intention of relinquishing Hamas' weapons of resistance, but instead just the opposite: They intend to strengthen Hamas militarily by equipping it with more technologically advanced weapons of their own making.

Indeed, since the Palestinian reconciliation agreement was signed in Cairo earlier this month, hardly a day goes by without Sinwar making some kind of militant proclamation toward Israel in which he boasts about the might of the military wing, the Qassam Brigades, of which he is a founder.