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An impending political storm over drafting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israeli army is threatening to undermine Israel's government and splitting the nation.

The public mood on the issue has changed profoundly in Israel after two years of hostilities, and this is now possibly the most volatile political challenge facing Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Legal Struggle

Legislators are now debating a proposal to terminate the special status granted to ultra-Orthodox men dedicated to yeshiva learning, created when the State of Israel was established in 1948.

The deferment was declared unconstitutional by Israel's High Court of Justice in the early 2000s. Interim measures to maintain it were formally ended by the judiciary last year, forcing the administration to begin drafting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Roughly 24,000 enlistment orders were sent out last year, but only around 1,200 Haredi conscripts enlisted, according to defense officials given to lawmakers.

Tensions Erupt Into Public View

Strains are boiling over onto the city centers, with elected officials now deliberating a new legislative proposal to require yeshiva students into army duty alongside other secular Israelis.

Two Haredi politicians were harassed this month by radical elements, who are furious with the Knesset's deliberations of the draft legislation.

And last week, a specialized force had to assist army police who were attacked by a large crowd of ultra-Orthodox protesters as they sought to apprehend a man avoiding service.

Such incidents have led to the development of a new communication network named "Black Alert" to rapidly disseminate information through Haredi neighborhoods and call out demonstrators to stop detentions from taking place.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," said Shmuel Orbach. "You can't fight against Judaism in a nation founded on Jewish identity. It doesn't work."

A Realm Set Aside

However the shifts sweeping across Israel have not yet breached the confines of the Torah academy in an ultra-Orthodox city, an ultra-Orthodox city on the fringes of Tel Aviv.

Within the study hall, young students study together to discuss Judaism's religious laws, their vividly colored school notebooks standing out against the seats of white shirts and head coverings.

"Arrive late at night, and you will see half the guys are studying Torah," the leader of the academy, Rabbi Tzemach Mazuz, noted. "Via dedicated learning, we safeguard the military personnel on the front lines. This constitutes our service."

Ultra-Orthodox believe that unceasing devotion and Torah learning defend Israel's military, and are as crucial to its military success as its tanks and air force. This conviction was endorsed by Israel's politicians in the previous eras, he said, but he conceded that Israel was changing.

Growing Societal Anger

The ultra-Orthodox population has grown substantially its proportion of the nation's citizens over the last seventy years, and now accounts for around one in seven. A policy that originated as an deferment for several hundred Torah scholars became, by the beginning of the recent conflict, a cohort of tens of thousands of men left out of the conscription.

Polling data suggest backing for ending the exemption is growing. A poll in July found that 85% of secular and traditional Jews - encompassing almost three-quarters in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - backed penalties for those who declined a enlistment summons, with a solid consensus in approving removing privileges, passports, or the franchise.

"I feel there are citizens who reside in this nation without serving," one off-duty soldier in Tel Aviv explained.

"I don't think, regardless of piety, [it] should be an excuse not to perform service your country," added a young woman. "Being a native, I find it somewhat unreasonable that you want to avoid service just to engage in religious study all day."

Perspectives from the Heart of the Community

Backing for broadening conscription is also coming from religious Jews not part of the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who resides close to the academy and notes religious Zionists who do serve in the military while also engaging in religious study.

"It makes me angry that ultra-Orthodox people don't enlist," she said. "It's unfair. I am also committed to the Torah, but there's a proverb in Jewish tradition - 'The Book and the Sword' – it signifies the Torah and the weapons together. That's the way forward, until the messianic era."

Ms Barak maintains a small memorial in her city to fallen servicemen, both religious and secular, who were killed in battle. Long columns of photographs {