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A looming political storm over drafting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israel Defense Forces is jeopardizing Israel's government and dividing the state.

Popular sentiment on the question has shifted dramatically in Israel in the wake of two years of conflict, and this is now arguably the most volatile political challenge facing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Legal Battle

Lawmakers are reviewing a draft bill to terminate the exemption given to ultra-Orthodox men enrolled in yeshiva learning, established when the modern Israel was founded in 1948.

The deferment was struck down by the Supreme Court in the early 2000s. Temporary arrangements to maintain it were finally concluded by the court last year, forcing the administration to begin drafting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Some 24,000 enlistment orders were issued last year, but only around 1,200 ultra-Orthodox - or Haredi - draftees showed up, according to military testimony shared with lawmakers.

Tensions Spill Into Public View

Strains are boiling over onto the public squares, with lawmakers now discussing a new conscription law to compel Haredi males into national service alongside other Israeli Jews.

Two representatives were harassed this month by radical elements, who are enraged with the legislative debate of the bill.

In a recent incident, a special Border Police unit had to rescue army police who were targeted by a big group of ultra-Orthodox protesters as they tried to arrest a alleged conscription dodger.

These enforcement actions have sparked the creation of a new messaging system named "Black Alert" to send out instant alerts through the religious sector and summon activists to prevent arrests from taking place.

"We're a Jewish country," stated an activist. "You can't fight against the Jewish faith in a nation founded on Jewish identity. It doesn't work."

An Environment Apart

However the changes affecting Israel have not reached the walls of the Torah academy in an ultra-Orthodox city, an ultra-Orthodox city on the edge of Tel Aviv.

Inside the classroom, scholars study together to discuss Judaism's religious laws, their distinctive writing books contrasting with the lines of formal attire and traditional skullcaps.

"Come at one in the morning, and you will see half the guys are studying Torah," the head of the yeshiva, the spiritual guide, explained. "Via dedicated learning, we protect the soldiers in the field. This is our army."

Ultra-Orthodox believe that constant study and spiritual pursuit defend Israel's soldiers, and are as essential to its military success as its tanks and air force. That belief was endorsed by Israel's politicians in the earlier decades, Rabbi Mazuz said, but he acknowledged that public attitudes are shifting.

Increasing Public Pressure

The Haredi community has significantly increased its percentage of Israel's population over the past seven decades, and now accounts for 14%. An exemption that started as an deferment for several hundred religious students turned into, by the onset of the 2023 war, a body of tens of thousands of men exempt from the draft.

Opinion polls show backing for ultra-Orthodox conscription is increasing. A survey in July found that a large majority of secular and traditional Jews - including a large segment in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - backed consequences for those who refused a call-up notice, with a clear majority in favor of cutting state subsidies, travel documents, or the franchise.

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

"In my view, however religious you are, [it] should be an justification not to fulfill your duty to your nation," stated a Tel Aviv resident. "Being a native, I find it somewhat unreasonable that you want to exempt yourself just to learn in a yeshiva all day."

Views from the Heart of Bnei Brak

Backing for broadening conscription is also expressed by observant Jews not part of the ultra-Orthodox sector, like one local resident, who lives near the yeshiva and notes non-Haredi religious Jews who do perform national service while also maintaining their faith.

"I am frustrated that ultra-Orthodox people don't enlist," she said. "This creates inequality. I am also committed to the Torah, but there's a proverb in Hebrew - 'The Book and the Sword' – it means the scripture and the defense together. This is the correct approach, until the messianic era."

Ms Barak manages a local tribute in her city to soldiers from the area, both from all backgrounds, who were fallen in war. Long columns of images {