PARIS (AFP) - France's biggest satirical weekly, "Le Canard Enchaine" said it received a gruesome death threat the day after Islamist gunmen shot dead 12 people in an attack against Charlie Hebdo magazine.

Le Canard Enchaine says in its edition being released Wednesday that an e-mail sent to the paper on Jan 8 warned "It's your turn" and threatened to slash its journalists to pieces "with an axe".

"Given the context, surveillance was strengthened" and police have opened an investigation, the paper wrote.

Le Canard Enchaine is the country's most popular satirical weekly, with a circulation of almost half a million compared to Charlie Hebdo's 60,000.

The paper, founded in 1915, is known for its many scoops on political and business circles and investigative reporting on ongoing scandals, while also featuring jokes and cartoons.