Background
Humans have always expressed a need to understand natural phenomenon and to answer questions regarding their way of life and what happens once they die. These needs resulted in the development of a variety of religions and philosophies that can be found throughout the world today.  Often, people of different religious backgrounds come into conflict.  At times, this conflict has resulted in violations of different religious group's basic human rights.

Holocaust
One of Adolf Hitler's main goals once taking control of Germany was the extermination of all European Jews.  The Jewish population of Europe had often been persecuted due to their religious difference from the majority Christian population.  However, the Holocaust would mark a turning point in that persecution.  The Holocaust was the systematic murder of over 6 million Jews.  Another 9 to 12 million Gypsies, homosexuals, African-European, and mentally ill people were also murdered.  

Hitler began his program by first limiting the rights of Jews.  Jews were restricted to a separate part of town, called a Ghetto, could no longer run businesses, nor could they marry outside of their race. As World War II progressed, Hitler began forcing them into concentration camps, where they were either immediately murdered, usually by poison gas, or used as slave labor until they died.  Their bodies were disposed of through cremation in the concentration camp ovens.  The Nazis also used Jews in horrific pseudo medical experiments.  The treatment of the Jews by the Nazis in World War II was a motivating factor of the United Nations in writing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Hindu-Muslim
Since the creation of India and Pakistan in 1947, violence between Indian Hindus and Pakistani Muslims has resulted in many human rights violations.  Millions of people were killed as Hindus fled Pakistan for India, and Muslims fled India for Pakistan.  The violence has continued in both countries, where the majority religious group often denies basic rights and security to the minority group. Also, border dispute between India and Pakistan have, at times, almost resulted in war.  This is a world concern due to both countries possessing nuclear weapons.

Northern Ireland
Ireland, with the exception of the six northern counties, has been independent of Great Britain since 1922.  The six northern counties are majority Protestant, and support the British remaining in control.  The people of the Irish Republic are majority Roman Catholic, and wish to reunite Ireland under their control and drive the British from the island.  

Ireland

This situation has resulted in widespread violence between the Protestants and the Catholics.  Some Catholics formed the Irish Republican Army (IRA) to rid the northern counties of the British.  They use terrorism as a way of achieving their goals.  The Protestants have also formed paramilitary-terrorist organizations to strike back at the Catholics.  Despite a cease fire signed in 1995, religious violence continues to occur.