A Paris court in May detained and charged a couple on accusations that they were involved in Iranian plots to kill Israelis and Jews in Germany and France, police sources told AFP.

Identified in the French media only as Abdelkrim S. and Sabrina B., both in their early 30s, the couple has been in police custody for the past four months as a criminal court reviewed the allegations against them.

French authorities are also crediting the cell with plots to set fire to four Israeli-owned companies in the south of France between late December 2023 and early January 2024, said a police source.

The trial involves a significant amount of intelligence material gathered by the DGSI (General Directorate for Internal Security) intelligence agency, whose details remain classified, according to a report by the news site Mediapart.

Security officials told Agence France-Presse that the defendants, who denied the allegations, had been working for the Iranian intelligence apparatus and had identified in France and Germany at least seven people with ties to Israel as targets of assassination.

The couple's alleged actions were part of an attempt by Tehran to "strike targeted civilians" to "create insecurity for the opposition" to Iran's regime "from within the Jewish/Israeli community," reads a report by the DGSI obtained by AFP.

The DGSI used the codename "Marco Polo" for its surveillance operation on the couple. This Iranian effort predates the Oct. 7 war with Israel, which has elevated the risk to potential targets, the report also said.

Abdelkrim S. was released last year from prison, where had been serving a 10-year sentence for manslaughter unrelated to Israel.

Last week, Israel's Channel 12 reported that Iran is recruiting criminals in Europe as assets for carrying out attacks on Israeli or Jewish targets on the continent.