Italy was condemned Tuesday by the European Court of Human Rights for displaying crucifixes in classrooms, thereby breaching an Italian woman's right to educate her children along secular lines.

The judgment sparked anger in Catholic Italy, with the country's education minister attacking the decision, insisting the crucifix was a - symbol of our tradition. -

The Strasbourg court found that - The compulsory display of a symbol of a given confession in premises used by the public authorities... restricted the right of parents to educate their children in conformity with their convictions. -

It also restricted the - right of children to believe or not to believe - the seven judges ruling on the case said.

The applicant, Soile Lautsi, was also awarded 5,000 euros (7,400 dollars) in damages.

Lautsi first brought the case eight years ago when her children, Dataico and Sami Albertin, aged 11 and 13, went to the state school in the northern Italian town of Abano Terme.

She was unhappy crucifixes were present in every classroom and complained to the school.

After education chiefs refused to remove the crosses, she spent several years fighting the decision through the Italian courts before taking the case to the Strasbourg court.