Agency Report –
Four ninth-grade students from Germany have been photographed making a far-right extremist gesture during a visit to the Auschwitz concentration camp memorial, prompting a police investigation.
A spokesman from the office for schools and education in the eastern state of Saxony confirmed the incident on Monday. He said a report has been filed with the police and investigations have been launched.
The photo, taken on March 13, shows the students from the city of Görlitz on the Polish border making the so-called white power salute.
The gesture, common in extremist circles, is not illegal in Germany, unlike the Nazi salute.
The state office said the school’s leadership reacted immediately and invited the students and their parents to disciplinary talks.
The students were reprimanded by the headmistress and assigned community service at a workshop for people with disabilities, it said.
The headmistress said the students understood what they had done wrong.
The state office said it is not aware of further incidents with a far-right extremist background at the school.
