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An impending crisis over drafting Haredi men into the military is threatening to undermine the governing coalition and splitting the country.

Popular sentiment on the issue has undergone a sea change in Israel after two years of war, and this is now perhaps the most volatile political challenge facing Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Legal Struggle

Politicians are reviewing a piece of legislation to terminate the deferment given to ultra-Orthodox men enrolled in full-time religious study, instituted when the the nation was established in 1948.

The deferment was struck down by the nation's top court two decades ago. Interim measures to extend it were officially terminated by the court last year, forcing the administration to commence conscription of the ultra-Orthodox population.

Approximately 24,000 draft notices were sent out last year, but merely about 1,200 men from the community enlisted, according to defense officials shared with lawmakers.

Strains Spill Into Violence

Tensions are erupting onto the streets, with parliamentarians now discussing a new draft bill to compel Haredi males into military service in the same way as other Jewish citizens.

Two representatives were harassed this month by hardline activists, who are incensed with the legislative debate of the draft legislation.

Recently, a special Border Police unit had to assist army police who were surrounded by a sizeable mob of Haredi men as they sought to apprehend a man avoiding service.

These enforcement actions have led to the development of a new alert system dubbed "Emergency Alert" to spread word quickly through ultra-Orthodox communities and call out activists to prevent arrests from taking place.

"We're a Jewish country," said Shmuel Orbach. "You can't fight against the Jewish faith in a Jewish state. It doesn't work."

An Environment Apart

However the changes sweeping across Israel have failed to penetrate the confines of the religious seminary in an ultra-Orthodox city, an ultra-Orthodox city on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

In the learning space, scholars study together to discuss the Torah, their brightly coloured notepads standing out against the seats of formal attire and traditional skullcaps.

"Come at one in the morning, and you will see half the guys are engaged in learning," the dean of the seminary, a senior rabbi, said. "By studying Torah, we shield the soldiers on the front lines. This is how we contribute."

Haredi Jews maintain that constant study and spiritual pursuit guard Israel's soldiers, and are as essential to its security as its advanced weaponry. That belief was accepted by previous governments in the past, Rabbi Mazuz said, but he acknowledged that the nation is evolving.

Rising Societal Anger

This religious sector has more than doubled its percentage of Israel's population over the since the state's founding, and now constitutes around one in seven. What began as an deferment for a few hundred Torah scholars became, by the beginning of the Gaza war, a cohort of tens of thousands of men left out of the draft.

Polling data indicate backing for drafting the Haredim is increasing. A poll in July found that a large majority of non-Haredi Jews - including almost three-quarters in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - backed sanctions for those who refused a call-up notice, with a solid consensus in supporting withdrawing benefits, passports, or the electoral participation.

"It makes me feel there are citizens who reside in this country without giving anything back," one military member in Tel Aviv explained.

"In my view, however religious you are, [it] should be an justification not to go and serve your state," added Gabby. "As a citizen by birth, I find it quite ridiculous that you want to opt out just to study Torah all day."

Views from the Heart of the Community

Support for ending the exemption is also coming from traditional Jews outside the ultra-Orthodox sector, like a Bnei Brak inhabitant, who resides close to the academy and highlights non-Haredi religious Jews who do enlist in the army while also engaging in religious study.

"It makes me angry that this community don't serve in the army," she said. "It is unjust. I am also committed to the Torah, but there's a saying in Jewish tradition - 'Safra and Saifa' – it signifies the scripture and the defense together. That's the way forward, until the messianic era."

She manages a modest remembrance site in her city to local soldiers, both observant and non-observant, who were lost in conflict. Rows of images {