There are fears that YouTube could be blocked in Russia following a court decision that ordered the highly controversial trailer for the movie “The Innocence of Muslims” to be taken down.

A judge at the Tverskoy Court in Moscow ruled on Monday that the 14-minute video, which has enraged Muslims across the globe for its slurs on the prophet Mohammed, is unsuitable for Russian audiences, as it carries an “extremist” message.

Viktoria Maslova, a state prosecutor, argued that the video shows Islam in a “negative light”, and had the potential to increase religious intolerance among Russians.

While Russia is not the only country to block the video in the last few weeks, its decision could have far bigger implications. The decision to ban the video could well provide all the ammunition Russian authorities need to shut down YouTube altogether, when a controversial censorship bill comes into force at the end of this month.

Censorship Bill 89412-6, which is set to be enacted on November 1 despite stiff opposition within Russia, gives the government the power to block any website it wishes, if it refuses to take down material it deems offensive within 24 hours of being given notice.

The problem lies in the fact that Google has been steadfast in its refusal to remove the controversial movie from its website. Because it refuses to do as it’s told, Google would be acting illegally under Russia’s new law, thus giving that country reason enough to shut down YouTube entirely.

Should Russia decide to block YouTube next month, it would join a list of countries including Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan that have also cut access to the website completely. A number of other countries, including Egypt, India, Indonesia, Libya and Malaysia decided against blocking YouTube, instead choosing to restrict access to “The Innocence of Muslims” only.