Charlie Hebdo sells out before dawn

A newspaper dealer sales the new edition of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo at Gare de Lyon train station, in Paris, January 14, 2015. [Photo/IC]

PARIS - Charlie Hebdo's defiant new issue is selling out before dawn around Paris, and still people are lining up at kiosks in case of a spare copy of the paper fronting the Prophet Muhammad.

The core of the irreverent newspaper's staff perished a week ago when Islamist extremists stormed its offices, killing 12. Those who survived put out the issue that appeared on newsstands Wednesday, working out of borrowed offices, with a print run of 3 million - more than 50 times the usual circulation.

One newsstand just off Paris' Champs Elysee sold out at 6:05 am, five minutes after opening. At Saint-Lazare, people hoping to buy a copy scuffled when they realized there weren't enough to go around.

The newspaper appears as France's government prepares strict new anti-terror measures.