Speaking to radio station Europe 1, Claude Guéant, interior minister at the time of the incident, said notable failures included the manner of the raid on Merah’s house.

“I recognise that there was one fault during the raid – it was when Merah left his apartment to make a phone call, escaping police, so it would seem, by the basement of the building – which he of course knew very well,” he said.

Guéant also pointed out French intelligence followed Merah before the incident, claiming he was a “complex character”.

“It seemed he was very reserved, weary, isolated and pent-up, but at the same time he was someone who went to nightclubs, occasionally dressed as a punk,” said Guéant.

“He was very difficult to figure out.”

President François Hollande also admitted yesterday in Toulouse, during a memorial service for Merah’s victims, to “flaws” in the case.