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A looming crisis over enlisting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israel Defense Forces is jeopardizing the governing coalition and dividing the nation.

Popular sentiment on the matter has undergone a sea change in Israel in the wake of two years of war, and this is now arguably the most explosive political risk facing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Legal Battle

Legislators are reviewing a proposal to terminate the exemption granted to ultra-Orthodox men dedicated to full-time religious study, established when the the nation was established in 1948.

The deferment was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court two decades ago. Interim measures to extend it were officially terminated by the court last year, compelling the administration to begin drafting the Haredi sector.

Approximately 24,000 call-up papers were issued last year, but just approximately 1,200 ultra-Orthodox - or Haredi - draftees showed up, according to army data presented to lawmakers.

Tensions Boil Over Onto the Streets

Friction is spilling onto the streets, with elected officials now discussing a new conscription law to require yeshiva students into army duty alongside other secular Israelis.

Two Haredi politicians were confronted this month by some extreme ultra-Orthodox protesters, who are enraged with parliament's discussion of the proposed law.

Recently, a special Border Police unit had to rescue Military Police officers who were targeted by a big group of community members as they attempted to detain a alleged conscription dodger.

Such incidents have led to the development of a new alert system dubbed "Emergency Alert" to spread word quickly through Haredi neighborhoods and call out activists to prevent arrests from happening.

"We're a Jewish country," stated one protester. "One cannot oppose Judaism in a Jewish country. That is untenable."

An Environment Set Aside

But the changes affecting Israel have not reached the confines of the religious seminary in an ultra-Orthodox city, an ultra-Orthodox city on the fringes of Tel Aviv.

Within the study hall, teenage boys learn in partnerships to analyze Jewish law, their vividly colored school notebooks standing out against the lines of white shirts and small black kippahs.

"Come at one in the morning, and you will see a significant portion are studying Torah," the leader of the yeshiva, a senior rabbi, noted. "Through religious study, we safeguard the troops wherever they are. This constitutes our service."

Ultra-Orthodox believe that unceasing devotion and Torah learning protect Israel's soldiers, and are as vital to its military success as its conventional forces. This tenet was acknowledged by the nation's leaders in the earlier decades, he said, but he acknowledged that public attitudes are shifting.

Increasing Public Pressure

The Haredi community has significantly increased its share of the nation's citizens over the last seventy years, and now constitutes 14%. A policy that originated as an deferment for several hundred religious students evolved into, by the start of the recent conflict, a cohort of approximately 60,000 men exempt from the conscription.

Surveys show support for drafting the Haredim is rising. A survey in July showed that an overwhelming percentage of non-Haredi Jews - even a significant majority in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - supported sanctions for those who declined a draft order, with a clear majority in favor of cutting state subsidies, the right to travel, or the franchise.

"It makes me feel there are people who reside in this nation without serving," one off-duty soldier in Tel Aviv commented.

"It is my belief, however religious you are, [it] should be an justification not to fulfill your duty to your nation," said Gabby. "Being a native, I find it quite ridiculous that you want to exempt yourself just to study Torah all day."

Voices from Within the Community

Backing for extending the draft is also expressed by observant Jews outside the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who resides close to the academy and points to religious Zionists who do enlist in the army while also maintaining their faith.

"I'm very angry that ultra-Orthodox people don't perform military service," she said. "This creates inequality. I also believe in the Torah, but there's a proverb in Hebrew - 'Safra and Saifa' – it represents the scripture and the weapons together. That's the way forward, until the messianic era."

She manages a small memorial in Bnei Brak to fallen servicemen, both religious and secular, who were fallen in war. Long columns of images {