JERUSALEM, April 9, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Israel's military said Thursday it had struck and killed a close adviser to Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem in Beirut a day earlier, when Israeli strikes pummelled Lebanon.

"Yesterday, the IDF struck in the Beirut area and eliminated Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary and nephew of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem," a military statement said.

Harshi was "a close associate and personal adviser to... Qassem and played a central role in managing and securing his office", it added.