"We think it was an error in judgment that they used that sign," she said.
The apology came last night, hours after B'nai Brith Canada publicly denounced the appearance of the gesture at some of Quebec's student protests.
In addition to the salute, chanting crowds have referred to local police officers as the "SS," calling them fascists and comparing them to Nazi police.
Swastikas have also appeared on anti-police pamphlets being distributed.
While the gestures are meant as an insult to police — and not as any expression of support for Nazism —Jewish organizations said that's no excuse.
B'nai Brith Canada says the action defiles the memory of those who died in the Holocaust, of those who survived, and of those who fought against the Nazis in the Second World War.
In an interview with The Canadian Press, CEO Frank Dimant said students should put a stop to using the gesture immediately.
"We condemn, in the strongest of terms, this inexcusable display of hate by Quebec student protesters that has outraged the Jewish community and demonstrated just how low the level of public debate has fallen on the streets of Montreal," Dimant also said, in a statement issued Tuesday.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2012/06/13/quebec-students-nazi-salute-apology.html?cmp=rss