A French court has sentenced Iranian national Mahdieh Esfandiari to four years in prison, three of them suspended, for promoting terrorism on social media. She was also banned from French territory. The conviction relates to online comments in which she described the deadly 7 October attack on Israel led by Hamas as an 'act of resistance'.

Esfandiari, 39, was arrested in February 2025 and had been viewed by Iranian officials as a possible candidate for a prisoner exchange. Her lawyer said she would appeal what was described as a severe sentence.

Iran had suggested she could be swapped for two French nationals, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who have been detained in Iran since May 2022 on espionage charges. While Iran has said an exchange deal was agreed pending legal procedures, French authorities have not confirmed such an arrangement. The two French detainees remain in Iran despite reports that they were moved from prison to the French embassy ahead of a potential release.