(IsraelNN.com) A Dutch court has upheld a conservative's legislator's right to express his opinion of Islam's violent tendencies in a film that sparked a wave of Islamic rage. The Islamic Federation sought to ban the film.

The court ruled that the film, Fitna, does not incite to hatred. In rejecting the petition by the Islamic Federation to ban the film, the judge said that although Member of Parliament Geert Wilders' comments might be provocative, they did not break the law.

Concerning Wilders' comments that the Muslim prophet Mohammed was a "barbarian," the judge said the Islamic Federation was unable to disprove the fact that the Muslim religion includes non-democratic principles.

"A Member of Parliament must be able to express his standpoint, if necessary, in sharp terms," said the judge in his decision, reported AFP. "Wilders' right to freedom of expression is the deciding factor here."

Dutch television has, however, not aired the film.

'The Netherlands in the Future?'
Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders said his film "Fitna" was intended to show the Koran as a "fascist" book that "incites people to murder." The film follows the words: "The Netherlands in the future?" with photos of Muslim children with blood on their faces, a woman being stoned and an image of genital mutilation.

The 15-minute film also features clips of the September 11, 2001 al Qaeda terrorist attack on the United States, interspersed with quotes from the Koran.

Following its release and immediate ban from several websites, a link to the film was immediately posted on IsraelNationalNews.com, triggering a wave of support and criticism. The Netherlands placed its embassies around the world on high alert for fear of violent Muslim protests, and the government placed Wilders under heavy guard.

A British video site that originally hosted the release of "Fitna" briefly removed the film from its website after receiving threats "of a very serious nature." The film was reposted to the site two days later.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon criticized the film as well, saying "There is no justification for hate speech or incitement to violence." Muslim societies are not at war with the West, said Ban, rather, "small minorities of extremists on different sides" are deliberately stirring up conflict.

'Not a Provocation, but Rather a Warning'
Fitna is an Arabic word that translates in English as "discord" or "ordeal" and is used to describe things that test faith, he said. "I use the term in an inverse sense because for me, Islam…. is fitna," said Wilders in a February interview with the French news agency AFP. 

Commenting on the anger his film aroused in the Muslim community, upon its release, Wilders explained that he did not intend the movie as a provocation, but rather as a warning.

"Islam and the Koran are dangers to the preservation of freedom in the Netherlands in the long term, and I have to warn people of that," he said.

The Dutch legislator has lived in a secure location with a heavy personal security detail since 2004 due to death threats from Muslim extremists.