James Woolsey said on Thursday that Snowden, a former NSA contractor who leaked confidential information in 2013, should be convicted of treason.

'It's still a capital crime, and I would give him the death sentence, and I would prefer to see him hanged by the neck until he's dead, rather than merely electrocuted,' Woolsey told CNN.

Snowden fled the country after stealing classified information and disclosing the extent of US surveillance programs. He currently resides in Russia, where he has been granted temporary asylum.

Woolsey said that Snowden (pictured) is partly responsible for the terror attacks in Paris that killed at least 132 people last week

The former CIA head said Snowden is partly responsible for the Paris attacks that left at least 132 dead and hundreds of people injured last week.

'I think the blood of a lot of these French young people is on his hands,' Woolsey, who served as the head of the CIA from 1993 to 1995, said.

He added that Snowden's leak was 'substantial'.