A terror attack at French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's headquarters left 12 people dead after some Muslims got offended by the firm's recent publication featuring Islam's prophet Mohammed.

Armed assailants wearing masks stormed the offices of the newspaper, randomly shooting people while shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest). Three gunmen are reportedly being hunted down by authorities, according to the Irish Examiner.

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Cartoonist Corinne "Coco" Rey, who survived the attack, recalled how she returned to the office after fetching her daughter from the day care center and encountered  two masked gunmen claiming to be Al Qaeda members who threatened them. The attackers, whom Rey said spoke very good French, said they forced her to let them inside the building, French news agency L'Humanite relayed.

Paris prosecutor spokeswoman Agnes Thibault-Lecuivre said the attack killed 12 people, including Charlie Hebdo editor Stephane Charbonnier and a cartoonist who used the pen names Charb and Cabu, respectively.

Two cops, including one acting as Charb's bodyguard, also died in the incident, a police official confirmed.

Al Qaeda had previously published a terrorist propaganda magazine called Inspire, which featured Charbonnier in a story entitled "2013 Wanted Dead or Alive for Crimes Against Islam."

Meanwhile, Charlie Hebdo editor-in-chief Gerard Biard was able to escape the attack because he was in London at the time it occurred. He told France Inter how shocked he was by the news and but added that he did not think the gunning was related to its latest satirical caricature about Islam because they did not receive any threats.

"I don't understand how people can attack a newspaper with heavy weapons," said Biard. "A newspaper is not a weapon of war."

French president Francois Hollande condemned the "terrorist attack" and vowed to make the perpetrators pay for the crime. He also urged the French people to remain strong and united.

The French government immediately launched a manhunt for the gunmen and raised the region's alert level to "alerte attentat," the highest national security alert level, according to the report.

The shooting at the satirical newspaper's offices comes on the heels of two vehicle attacks in the French capital. In December, a van plowed into a group of Christmas shoppers in Nantes and injured 10 people. In Dijon, a driver also ran down and injured 13 people while shouting "Allahu Akbar."

However, the French government said the massacre at the Charlie Hebdo headquarters was not linked with the previous attacks. In the wake of these violent incidents, France will be deploying 300 soldiers in the area and further tighten security in public places, the report said.

Tagsterror attack, Paris massacre, Charlie Hebdo, Al-qaeda, Stephane Charbonnier