MOSCOW, February 2 (Sputnik) – The French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo is taking a short break after a recent terrorist attack on its Paris office which took the lives of 12 people.
"Dear readers, the entire Charlie Hebdo team wants to thank each and every one of you for the huge support and all the sympathy we have received in the past weeks. We are not forgetting you and will be back in the newsstands in the next weeks," a message on the official Charlie Hebdo website says.
Last month, the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) terrorist group, which had claimed responsibility for the Charlie Hebdo attack, called for more action by its followers in Europe.
Radicalized Muslims organized several terrorist attacks in the Paris area in January. Gunmen attacked the Charlie Hebdo editorial office on January 7. The next day, another gunman, believed to be associated with the Islamic State (IS) extremist group, shot a police officer dead near the French capital. The following day the same gunman killed four hostages in a Paris kosher food shop.
Following the attacks, European police service Europol reported there was a potential threat of new terrorist attacks across the European Union, including the United Kingdom, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
The Charlie Hebdo magazine is known for its satirical cartoons of political and religious leaders, including the Prophet Muhammad, who appeared on the cover of the issue published right after the January 7 attack.
