Religion or other cultural factors such as ethnicity are often cited by individuals within a conflict and outsiders as one of the factors that lead to the conflict. In societies or regions with differing religions there is the potential for political elites or groups to use these differences as forces to be mobilized to foment conflict in a society. Religious differences can be representative of other differences within a community as well that combined help to foment conflict. An example of a conflict which was both religious, but much more than a religious conflict was the Troubles in Northern Ireland that led to conflict between the Protestant and Catholic members of this community.
