Students from one of Auckland's top secondary schools will front up at Auckland War Memorial Museum today to apologise for paying homage to Nazi symbols.
The Auckland Grammar School boys caused national outage when photos -- uploaded on the a social networking site -- showed them kissing a swastika, bowing before a Nazi banner and making a Nazi salute during school visit to a Nazi exhibition at the museum.
Today the students will return to the museum to apologise to staff who were shocked and disgusted by their behaviour.
The Returned Services' Association (RSA) said yesterday the boys appeared ignorant of what they had done.
RSA president Robin Klitscher said their actions were "profoundly ignorant".
"I think that is probably what causes the greatest offence," he said.
It was not an occasion to vilify the students.
"It's an occasion to pity them."
School principal John Morris said the students knew what the Nazi symbol represented and the students were interviewed once the school was notified of the photos.
He said there was absolutely no justification for the immature and unthinking behaviour.
Families of all the boys were told yesterday and all would face disciplinary action. It was understood one student had been stood down.
