The leader of Britain's largest Muslim charity resigns after calling Jews "the grandchildren of monkeys and pigs"

The leader of Britain's largest Muslim charity has resigned after anti-Semitic messages were posted on social networks. Heshmat Khalifa, a former trustee and director of Islamic Relief Worldwide, said Jews are "the grandchildren of monkeys and pigs".

In addition, Khalifa also described Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi as a "Zionist pimp" on his Facebook page, according to The Times and the Daily Mail. He also described the Muslim president - who overthrew President Morsi in July 2013 - as a "pimp son of the Jews" and a "Zionist criminal".

There were other messages on his page, written in Arabic, promoting the work of the charity which has 100 offices in 40 countries around the world. His Facebook page has been removed. The 63-year-old has been with the organization since 1999 and has held several senior positions in the organization, which has earned an annual income of £570 million over the past five years, according to the newspapers mentioned above.

Islamic Relief is one of the largest Muslim charities in the world and says on its website that its mission is "to enable people to respond quickly to disasters and fight poverty through our Islamic values, our experience and our global reach". 

The charity is currently making several high-profile appeals for funds to help those affected by the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, as well as the current problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to statements in the UK's Daily Mail.

Mr Khalifa - who until recently was chairman of Islamic Relief Australia - also used social media to describe Hamas as "the purest resistance movement in modern history". The Charity Commission has now opened a compliance case at Islamic Relief. 

Mr. Khalifa has regretted posting on social networks. "I didn't mean to insult the Jewish community and I don't have any anti-Semitic views," he said.  "I have dedicated much of my life to promoting tolerance and freedom of religion and belief. 

Islamic Relief told the newspaper that the Facebook postings, which were made between 2013 and 2015, "contravene the values and principles of Islamic Relief Worldwide.  "Heshmat Khalifa has resigned from the board of directors of Islamic Relief Worldwide with immediate effect.  Nor will he serve on any other board of Islamic Relief," the organization added. "We reject and condemn terrorism and believe that all forms of discrimination, including anti-Semitism, are unacceptable," they said.