Souad Merah, sister of Mohamed, now 34, was known to the DCRI, the French intelligence agency, for being close to extreme Salafi Muslims in Toulouse and attending classes to study the Koran.

One record of her activity in police files said she was “known for her links to radical Salafi Muslim movements” and had bought four return plane tickets from Paris to Cairo, where she studied the Koran.

Her brother Mohamed, who had been on police files since 2009, followed in her footsteps and took the same Koran classes in Cairo a year later.

Souad also helped her brother financially, giving him her mobile phone and cash according to the RTL report.

Mohamed Merah, who claimed to be part of Al-Qaida, died in Toulouse on March 22nd this year after a two-day raid on his apartment. He confessed to three shootings earlier in the month in which seven people died.