Israeli galleries stash away masterpieces by Rembrandt and Picasso amid Iran strike fears

Fears of an Iranian blitz on Israel have seen art galleries in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem move masterpieces to protected storerooms due to the risk of potential damage from missiles or drones.

Curators at Israeli galleries told Haaretz that works of art by Rembrandt and other masters were no longer on display to the public with Iranian retaliatory strikes on Israel believed to be imminent.

The removal process began 10 days ago, shortly after Iran vowed revenge for the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the killing of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shakr in Beirut.

"The goal is to protect the works," the Israel Museum in Jerusalem said.

"We have a responsibility to protect them and the situation requires taking precautions."

Tel Aviv Museum of Art also moved masterpieces to vaults for safekeeping, the Israeli daily added.

Among the works of art taken down from display are The Castle of the Pyrenees by Belgian surrealist René Magritte and St. Peter in Prison by Dutch master Rembrandt.

Israeli artist Yitzhak Dan's sculpture Nimrod has also been moved to the storerooms of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, which closed briefly during the start of the war on Gaza in October.

The works of art were later brought back for display to the public with one exception - fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls, priceless artefacts that remain in storage.

Tel Aviv Museum of Art has also moved Gustav Klimt's Portrait of Friedericke Maria Beer to a storeroom, along with works by Pablo Picasso and others.

Iran and Hezbollah are expected to launch missile and drone strikes on Israel at any moment with questions over the scale and timing.

Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at military targets inside Israel in April, after the assassination of senior Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Mohammed Reza Zahedi.

Most of the projectiles were downed by Israeli, Jordanian, American, French, and British air defences with intelligence support from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

There has also been panic in Lebanon, where a massive assault by Israel is expected if Iran and Hezbollah strike but lack the air defences and bunkers that Israeli citizens enjoy.