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(Image: GETTY)

The youngster had been in contact with an Islamic fanatic in Syria using an encrypted messaging app popular among terrorists.

The teen – who was not previously known to intelligence services – was taken into custody early on Wednesday from his parents' house in Domont, near Paris.

He appeared before a court on Friday morning charged with criminal association with a terrorist group.

(Image: Getty)

(Image: Getty)

A source close to the investigation said there was a suspicion he was going to commit a terrorist attack.

"Once he was taken into custody, he told officers he had abandoned the plan," they said.

In the last few weeks around 10 adolescents have been held as the authorities tackle home-grown jihadist violence that is increasingly drawing in teens.

French terror chief Rachid Kassim, 29, who has appeared in several ISIS propaganda videos, is believed to have been a key influence on many youths in the region.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has said the terror threat was still at a "maximum" following massacres in Paris and Nice this year.

Valls said that around 15,000 people were known to police in France as having been radicalised, up from a previous estimate of 10,000.