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A looming crisis over conscripting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israeli army is jeopardizing Israel's government and dividing the country.

Public opinion on the question has changed profoundly in Israel in the wake of two years of war, and this is now possibly the most volatile political issue facing Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Judicial Conflict

Legislators are reviewing a draft bill to terminate the deferment given to ultra-Orthodox men enrolled in Torah study, instituted when the State of Israel was founded in 1948.

That exemption was ruled illegal by the nation's top court two decades ago. Interim measures to extend it were formally ended by the bench last year, pressuring the administration to start enlisting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Some 24,000 enlistment orders were delivered last year, but only around 1,200 ultra-Orthodox - or Haredi - draftees reported for duty, according to defense officials given to lawmakers.

Tensions Boil Over Into Violence

Tensions are erupting onto the city centers, with lawmakers now deliberating a new legislative proposal to require yeshiva students into army duty alongside other Israeli Jews.

A pair of ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were targeted this month by radical elements, who are enraged with the legislative debate of the draft legislation.

In a recent incident, a specialized force had to assist army police who were surrounded by a large crowd of ultra-Orthodox protesters as they sought to apprehend a alleged conscription dodger.

These arrests have led to the development of a new communication network dubbed "Emergency Alert" to send out instant alerts through Haredi neighborhoods and call out demonstrators to stop detentions from happening.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," said one protester. "You can't fight against Judaism in a Jewish country. That is untenable."

An Environment Apart

However the transformations affecting Israel have not yet breached the confines of the Torah academy in an ultra-Orthodox city, an ultra-Orthodox city on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

In the learning space, scholars learn in partnerships to debate Judaism's religious laws, their distinctive writing books popping against the lines of formal attire and head coverings.

"Visit in the early hours, and you will see a significant portion are studying Torah," the leader of the yeshiva, a senior rabbi, explained. "By studying Torah, we safeguard the soldiers on the front lines. This is how we contribute."

Haredi Jews maintain that continuous prayer and Torah learning protect Israel's military, and are as essential to its security as its conventional forces. That belief was endorsed by Israel's politicians in the previous eras, Rabbi Mazuz said, but he admitted that the nation is evolving.

Increasing Popular Demand

The Haredi community has grown substantially its proportion of the country's people over the past seven decades, and now accounts for a sizable minority. A policy that originated as an deferment for several hundred religious students evolved into, by the beginning of the Gaza war, a group of some 60,000 men exempt from the national service.

Opinion polls show backing for ultra-Orthodox conscription is rising. Research in July found that a large majority of the broader Jewish public - including a large segment in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - backed penalties for those who refused a draft order, with a solid consensus in supporting cutting state subsidies, passports, or the right to vote.

"I feel there are citizens who live in this country without giving anything back," one off-duty soldier in Tel Aviv said.

"In my view, no matter how devout, [it] should be an reason not to fulfill your duty to your state," stated Gabby. "Being a native, I find it somewhat unreasonable that you want to avoid service just to engage in religious study all day."

Voices from the Heart of Bnei Brak

Advocacy of extending the draft is also coming from religious Jews not part of the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who lives near the academy and notes religious Zionists who do serve in the military while also engaging in religious study.

"It makes me angry that this community don't perform military service," she said. "It is unjust. I also believe in the Torah, but there's a teaching in Hebrew - 'Safra and Saifa' – it represents the Torah and the weapons together. This is the correct approach, until the days of peace."

She maintains a small memorial in her city to local soldiers, both religious and secular, who were lost in conflict. Lines of photographs {