ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iran's judiciary sentenced two French nationals to 31 and 32 years imprisonment, respectively, on charges of spying for French intelligence, cooperation with Israel, and compromising the country's security, Iran's state broadcaster announced on Tuesday.

"One of the defendants was sentenced to 6 years in prison on charges of espionage for the French intelligence service, 5 years in prison on charges of conspiracy to commit a crime against the security of the country, and 20 years in prison in exile on charges of intelligence cooperation with the Zionist regime," read an IRIB report.

The other suspect, also convicted of the same charges, was given 10 years' imprisonment for spying on behalf of French intelligence, 5 years in prison on charges of conspiring to "commit a crime" against Iran's security, and 17 years for assisting in intelligence cooperation with Israel.

Iranian authorities have repeatedly detained French nationals in the country on charges of espionage. Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, two French academics, remain in Iranian custody after being detained in 2022 during a trip to the country on charges of spying for Israel. 

Last week, Iran released Lennart Monterlos, a 19-year-old dual French/German citizen who was arrested while traveling in the coastal area of Bandar Abbas during the 12-Day War with Israel in June.

Iran's relations with France, a signatory to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement, took a downturn after Paris recently elected to vote in favor of reimposing "snapback" sanctions by the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Iran after the US unilaterally withdrew from the deal in 2018.

Iran's nuclear program has driven a wedge in its diplomatic relations with Western countries allied with Washington and has sown a long-standing mistrust between the two sides.

Tehran, meanwhile, maintains a hardline adversarial approach to its relations with Israel, and espionage or engaging in correspondence with Israeli intelligence carries hefty sentences in the Iranian judiciary.

Since the 12-Day War with Israel in June, Iran has hanged several convicts on charges of conspiring with Israeli intelligence.

In late September, the Iranian judiciary executed Bahman Choobiasl after convicting him of spying for Israel. Choobiasl was a manager in an intelligence company and oversaw its projects, providing him with “high-level access to the country's vital and governmental databases,” which he allegedly shared with Mossad agents, according to the Mizan agency, Iran's judiciary outlet.