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An impending political storm over enlisting Haredi men into the military is threatening to undermine Israel's government and splitting the country.

The public mood on the question has shifted dramatically in Israel in the wake of two years of war, and this is now perhaps the most divisive political challenge facing the Prime Minister.

The Constitutional Struggle

Politicians are currently considering a draft bill to abolish the deferment given to ultra-Orthodox men enrolled in Torah study, established when the the nation was established in 1948.

That exemption was ruled illegal by Israel's High Court of Justice almost 20 years ago. Interim measures to maintain it were officially terminated by the court last year, compelling the administration to start enlisting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Approximately 24,000 enlistment orders were delivered last year, but only around 1,200 men from the community reported for duty, according to army data presented to lawmakers.

Strains Erupt Into Violence

Strains are boiling over onto the streets, with elected officials now deliberating a new conscription law to force Haredi males into military service alongside other Israeli Jews.

A pair of ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were confronted this month by hardline activists, who are incensed with the legislative debate of the proposed law.

And last week, a special Border Police unit had to extract enforcement personnel who were attacked by a sizeable mob of community members as they sought to apprehend a suspected draft-evader.

These enforcement actions have prompted the establishment of a new messaging system named "Emergency Alert" to send out instant alerts through ultra-Orthodox communities and summon protesters to stop detentions from taking place.

"This is a Jewish state," stated one protester. "You can't fight against the Jewish faith in a nation founded on Jewish identity. It is a contradiction."

An Environment Set Aside

Yet the transformations blowing through Israel have not yet breached the environment of the religious seminary in Bnei Brak, an religious community on the edge of Tel Aviv.

Inside the classroom, teenage boys study together to analyze Jewish law, their brightly coloured writing books standing out against the rows of light-colored shirts and traditional skullcaps.

"Arrive late at night, and you will see half the guys are engaged in learning," the leader of the yeshiva, a senior rabbi, explained. "By studying Torah, we shield the soldiers in the field. This is our army."

The community holds that constant study and religious study guard Israel's soldiers, and are as crucial to its defense as its advanced weaponry. That belief was endorsed by Israel's politicians in the previous eras, he said, but he conceded that the nation is evolving.

Rising Societal Anger

The ultra-Orthodox population has more than doubled its proportion of the nation's citizens over the past seven decades, and now constitutes around one in seven. An exemption that started as an deferment for a small number of yeshiva attendees evolved into, by the onset of the Gaza war, a body of tens of thousands of men not subject to the draft.

Polling data show support for ultra-Orthodox conscription is rising. A poll in July showed that an overwhelming percentage of non-Haredi Jews - even a large segment in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - favored sanctions for those who ignored a draft order, with a firm majority in approving withdrawing benefits, travel documents, or the franchise.

"I feel there are individuals who are part of this nation without contributing," one serviceman in Tel Aviv explained.

"In my view, however religious you are, [it] should be an excuse not to perform service your nation," said Gabby. "If you're born here, I find it somewhat unreasonable that you want to exempt yourself just to engage in religious study all day."

Views from Inside the Community

Backing for extending the draft is also expressed by traditional Jews beyond the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who resides close to the academy and highlights observant but non-Haredi Jews who do perform national service while also engaging in religious study.

"It makes me angry that ultra-Orthodox people don't serve in the army," she said. "It's unfair. I also believe in the Torah, but there's a saying in Jewish tradition - 'Safra and Saifa' – it represents the scripture and the guns together. That is the path, until the days of peace."

Ms Barak manages a small memorial in her city to local soldiers, both religious and secular, who were fallen in war. Rows of photographs {