Anything that can be declared evil through repetition on state influenced media is always popular with autocratic leaders.

One of the reasons "they're oppressing and committing atrocities against some of our people who live there!" has been a perpetual casus belli against neighboring states.

If you trumpet it long enough, eventually people start believing and get mad.

this topic is large and easily misunderstood. No absolute statement covers all. therefore all absolute statements are untrue. People originated as tribal groups, most of them fought violently over territory at times. Meanwhile "religion" is always present, but in varied forms. The stratification and codification of "religion" and The State occurred in different ways in different cultures, but it is certainly a compromise between active violence and active spiritual traditions, in a society. You can say "people who claim to be ReligionX used violence" and it means more than one thing.