Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal were arrested on July 31, 2009 near Iran's border with Iraq, along with a third American, Sarah Shourd, who was freed on $500,000 bail in September 2010 and returned home.

The trio, in their late 20s and early 30s, say they were hiking in the mountains of northern Iraq and, if they crossed the unmarked border into Iran, it was by mistake.

"In connection with illegal entry into Iranian territory each was given three years in jail and in connection with the charge of cooperating with American intelligence service, each was given five years in jail," a state TV website said, quoting what it called an informed judiciary source.

They have 20 days to appeal, it said.

The United States, which does not have diplomatic relations with Iran, said it was trying to confirm the report through the Swiss Protecting Power, which handles US diplomatic interests with Tehran.

Reuters