Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Italy will ignore an “unreal” European court ruling that bans crucifixes from state-run schools as it appeals the decision, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said.

“It’s not binding,” Berlusconi said of the ruling after a Cabinet meeting in Rome today. “Whatever the outcome of the appeal, there’s no obligatory force to the decision.”

This week’s European Court of Human Rights ruling stems from a 2006 complaint by a woman who said crosses displayed in the classrooms of her children violated the way she wanted to raise them. Her children were age 11 and 13 in 2001 when she first filed a complaint locally.

The Strasbourg, France-based court said the crosses “restricted the right of parents to educate their children in conformity with their convictions, and the right of children to believe or not to believe.”

According to the rules of the court, member states must respect final rulings. This week’s decision is not yet final.

The appeal, which the Cabinet today agreed to present, will be reviewed by a panel of judges, according to a court spokeswoman.

If the appeal is rejected, the current ruling becomes final. If the appeal is accepted, a 17-judge chamber will review the case and their decision will be binding, the spokeswoman said.

The case is: Lautsi v. Italy, 30814/06, European Court of Human Rights.

To contact the reporter on this story: Steve Scherer in Rome at sscherer@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 6, 2009 09:54 EST