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An impending crisis over conscripting Haredi men into the Israeli army is jeopardizing Israel's government and dividing the country.

Public opinion on the matter has changed profoundly in Israel in the wake of two years of war, and this is now possibly the most explosive political risk facing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Legal Conflict

Lawmakers are now debating a proposal to terminate the exemption awarded to ultra-Orthodox men engaged in full-time religious study, instituted when the modern Israel was founded in 1948.

This arrangement was declared unconstitutional by the nation's top court almost 20 years ago. Interim measures to continue it were officially terminated by the court last year, forcing the administration to begin drafting the community.

Some 24,000 draft notices were delivered last year, but just approximately 1,200 ultra-Orthodox - or Haredi - draftees reported for duty, according to army data given to lawmakers.

Friction Erupt Into Public View

Tensions are erupting onto the public squares, with parliamentarians now deliberating a new conscription law to compel ultra-Orthodox men into national service in the same way as other secular Israelis.

Two representatives were harassed this month by some extreme ultra-Orthodox protesters, who are incensed with the Knesset's deliberations of the proposed law.

Recently, a specialized force had to rescue army police who were targeted by a sizeable mob of Haredi men as they attempted to detain a man avoiding service.

These enforcement actions have sparked the creation of a new messaging system called "Dark Alert" to spread word quickly through Haredi neighborhoods and summon protesters to block enforcement from taking place.

"This is a Jewish state," remarked Shmuel Orbach. "You can't fight against the Jewish faith in a Jewish state. That is untenable."

A Realm Separate

However the shifts blowing through Israel have not yet breached the confines of the Torah academy in Bnei Brak, an religious community on the fringes of Tel Aviv.

In the learning space, teenage boys study together to discuss Jewish law, their brightly coloured notepads popping against the lines of white shirts and small black kippahs.

"Come at one in the morning, and you will see half the guys are engaged in learning," the head of the seminary, a senior rabbi, said. "Through religious study, we safeguard the troops wherever they are. This is how we contribute."

Haredi Jews maintain that constant study and Torah learning guard Israel's armed forces, and are as essential to its defense as its tanks and air force. That belief was endorsed by the nation's leaders in the past, Rabbi Mazuz said, but he conceded that Israel was changing.

Increasing Public Pressure

The ultra-Orthodox population has grown substantially its share of Israel's population over the since the state's founding, and now accounts for a sizable minority. An exemption that started as an deferment for several hundred religious students evolved into, by the beginning of the Gaza war, a body of tens of thousands of men not subject to the conscription.

Opinion polls show support for ending the exemption is increasing. A poll in July revealed that 85% of non-Haredi Jews - including almost three-quarters in Netanyahu's own right-wing Likud party - supported penalties for those who declined a call-up notice, with a solid consensus in supporting withdrawing benefits, travel documents, or the franchise.

"It makes me feel there are citizens who reside in this nation without contributing," one military member in Tel Aviv explained.

"I don't think, regardless of piety, [it] should be an reason not to fulfill your duty to your country," stated Gabby. "Being a native, I find it quite ridiculous that you want to avoid service just to learn in a yeshiva all day."

Views from the Heart of a Religious City

Backing for extending the draft is also expressed by observant Jews outside the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who resides close to the yeshiva and highlights non-Haredi religious Jews who do serve in the military while also engaging in religious study.

"It makes me angry that the Haredim don't serve in the army," she said. "It's unfair. I too follow the Jewish law, but there's a proverb in Jewish tradition - 'The Book and the Sword' – it signifies the scripture and the defense together. That is the path, until the arrival of peace."

The resident runs a small memorial in Bnei Brak to fallen servicemen, both from all backgrounds, who were lost in conflict. Lines of photographs {