GETTY Two radicalised Frenchman were arrested on their way to Syria

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The men, who were both on the government’s terrorist watch list, known as the ‘S’ list, managed to escape from France in December and head towards ISIS-controlled territory despite being under heavy police surveillance, it has been revealed. The extremists fled the country while under house arrest in Bayonne, a town in southwestern France, prefect of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques region Éric Morvan said.

GETTY The men escaped France in December and were heading towards ISIS-controlled territory

Mr Morvan said the men, whose names and identities are yet to be revealed, “violated the terms of their house arrest". The radicalised duo were not allowed to leave Bayonne and had to check in at the local police station several times a week, but somehow managed to slip under the radar. They were eventually arrested in Slovenia, a stopover point for people going to Syria, after travelling more than 900 miles across Europe. Mr Morvan added: “The fact that two radicalised men managed to escape while under house arrest does not mean that Bayonne is a hotbed of jihadism."

But the news of their arrest has cast a harsh spotlight on France’s ‘new’ emergency rules. Earlier this year, lawmakers announced that France would be loosening its emergency laws, which give police greater search-and-arrest powers. From now on, officials must take into account the “personal and professional life” of suspected terrorists before setting out the terms of their house arrest and “respect their fundamental rights”.

GETTY The two were under heavy police surveillance and were both on the government’s terrorist watch list