French President François Hollande made an unannounced visit to the main mosque in Paris on Sunday, a year after terrorists attacked the offices of the Charlie Hebdo magazine in the French capital.

"The president had a short conversation and shared a moment of friendship and fraternity over a cup of tea," a French presidency official said. Earlier on Sunday, Hollande attended a low-key event to mark a year since 1.5 million people thronged Paris in a show of unity, following the shootings at Charlie Hebdo newspaper and a Jewish supermarket.

Mosques across France opened their doors to the public this weekend in a bid by the Muslim community to build bridges, following a series of extremist attacks that rocked France in 2015. "The objective is to create a space where people can be together and meet normal Muslim worshippers and all of our fellow citizens," Anouar Kbibech, president of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve was among those who sipped mint tea as he visited a mosque near Paris on Saturday. France needs "the engagement of all Muslims in France," Cazeneuve said, while warning that "the self-proclaimed preachers of hate" in mosques would be dealt with severely. In November, France was hit by its worst terror attack since World War II during which at least 130 people died, and Hollande responded to the massacre by vowing to crush Daesh, the terrorist group which claimed responsibility. French jets have since been bombing the terrorist group in Syria and Iraq. After the attack, France imposed strict security measures, announcing a national state of emergency, thousands of troops were deployed, tourist sites have been closed down and dozens of suspects have been detained.