A UNIVERSITY lecturer has been sacked over claims he posted anti-Semitic material on Facebook.

Essex University has confirmed an investigation into allegations relating to a member of staff has resulted in them being fired following a tribunal hearing.

It is believed the member of staff is computer science lecturer Dr Maaruf Ali who allegedly posted “the Zionists next want to create a society here at our university”.

It came as a bid to create a Jewish society on campus was initially blocked when 200 students voted against it.

However the voting was then deemed void, a re-run was cancelled and the society then automatically ratified.

Posts also appeared to have been shared from the account which appeared to deny the Holocaust.

They have since been deleted.

A spokesman for Essex University said: “The university has now completed an independent investigation into the serious allegations made against a member of university staff.

"Following a tribunal hearing which considered all the evidence the member of staff has been dismissed.”