Charlie Hebdo editor, Stephane Charbonnier was killed in the attack

Paris police say masked gunman shouting “Allahu Akbar” stormed the offices of the French magazine, Charlie Hebdo, and gunned down 12 people in retaliation for publishing cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammed.

Sky News is reporting that the gunmen, armed with Kalashnikov rifles and a rocket-propelled grenade, stormed the offices of the magazine and killed both the publication’s editor and lead cartoonist along with several others. Two police officers were also killed.

The attackers are said to have shouted: "We have avenged the prophet” during their killing spree, referring to the publication of a comic strip mocking the Prophet Mohammed which appeared in the magazine in 2012.

The satirical magazine has a long history of publishing controversial material and was firebombed in 2011 by outraged Muslims for its offensive portrayals of their prophet.

At the time, the magazine’s editor-in-chief, Stephane Charbonnier, 47, insisted that the publication would not be silenced and was back in print a week later.

“We cannot, today, put together a paper,” Charbonnier said the day of the bombing. “But we will do everything possible to do one next week. Whatever happens, we’ll do it. There is no question of giving in.”

Charbonnier was killed in the attack today in spite of the fact that he was living under police protection due to so many death threats.

Eyewitnesses said the gunmen called out their victims by name, killing 11 inside the building, and injuring 20, four seriously.

Amateur video also captured the sickening scene of the attackers leaving the building and approaching a wounded police officer who was on the ground with his hands in the air. The gunmen shot the officer in the head, after which time they calmly walked to their vehicle and sped away.

The incident sparked both national and international outrage.

"An act of barbarism has been committed against a newspaper in Paris," said French President Francois Hollande, who visited the scene. “We have to be firm, we have to be strong. We will punish the attackers.”

He added, “France is in shock. We are a united country.”

The security level in Paris has been raised to its highest level and the gunmen are being hunted by every available agency. An emergency meeting of the French cabinet has been convened to discuss the situation.

President Barack Obama condemned the attack “in the strongest possible terms” along with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

British Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted: "The murders in Paris are sickening. We stand with the French people in the fight against terror and defending the freedom of the press."

The killings sent shock waves through the international press. Christophe DeLoire of Reporters Without Borders said: "This is the darkest day of the history of the French press."

France has long been struggling to come to terms with the five million Muslim immigrants in the country, many of whom refuse to integrate and at times openly flout French law and custom. This has resulted in the rise of what some refer to as “parallel cultures” or "mini caliphates" within the country where friction between Muslims and the native population has frequently turned violent.

In April of this year, the leaders of four major religious denominations in France issued a statement saying, "An unhealthy climate grows day after day in our country. It's urgent to react and get a grip on ourselves.''

Today’s attack is likely to pour more fuel on an already dangerous cultural situation.

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