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A looming political storm over conscripting Haredi men into the military is jeopardizing the administration and dividing the country.

The public mood on the question has undergone a sea change in Israel in the wake of two years of conflict, and this is now possibly the most explosive political risk facing the Prime Minister.

The Constitutional Battle

Politicians are now debating a draft bill to terminate the deferment granted to Haredi students engaged in Torah study, established when the State of Israel was declared in 1948.

This arrangement was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court almost 20 years ago. Stopgap solutions to maintain it were formally ended by the court last year, forcing the cabinet to begin drafting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Some 24,000 call-up papers were issued last year, but merely about 1,200 men from the community enlisted, according to military testimony presented to lawmakers.

Friction Spill Into Public View

Tensions are erupting onto the streets, with elected officials now debating a new conscription law to require Haredi males into military service alongside other Israeli Jews.

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 special Border Police unit had to rescue army police who were targeted by a big group of Haredi men as they attempted to detain a alleged conscription dodger.

These enforcement actions have sparked the creation of a new communication network dubbed "Black Alert" to send out instant alerts through the religious sector and mobilize protesters to stop detentions from occurring.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," stated one protester. "One cannot oppose Judaism in a nation founded on Jewish identity. That is untenable."

A Realm Apart

But the transformations blowing through Israel have failed to penetrate the walls of the Kisse Rahamim yeshiva in Bnei Brak, an ultra-Orthodox city on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

Within the study hall, scholars learn in partnerships to debate Jewish law, their distinctive notepads standing out against the seats of formal attire and head coverings.

"Arrive late at night, and you will see a significant portion are studying Torah," the dean of the academy, the spiritual guide, explained. "By studying Torah, we shield the troops in the field. This constitutes our service."

The community holds that continuous prayer and Torah learning defend Israel's armed forces, and are as vital to its military success as its advanced weaponry. This conviction was endorsed by the nation's leaders in the earlier decades, Rabbi Mazuz said, but he conceded that public attitudes are shifting.

Growing Societal Anger

The ultra-Orthodox population has more than doubled its share of the nation's citizens over the past seven decades, and now accounts for a sizable minority. A policy that originated as an exemption for several hundred religious students evolved into, by the beginning of the Gaza war, a body of some 60,000 men left out of the draft.

Opinion polls show approval of drafting the Haredim is increasing. A poll in July revealed that an overwhelming percentage of non-Haredi Jews - including a large segment in the Prime Minister's political base - backed penalties for those who ignored a draft order, with a firm majority in favor of removing privileges, the right to travel, or the right to vote.

"I feel there are citizens who are part of this nation without serving," one military member in Tel Aviv explained.

"In my view, however religious you are, [it] should be an excuse not to perform service your state," added a Tel Aviv resident. "Being a native, I find it somewhat unreasonable that you want to opt out just to learn in a yeshiva all day."

Perspectives from Inside Bnei Brak

Support for broadening conscription is also found among religious Jews outside the Haredi community, like a Bnei Brak inhabitant, who lives near the seminary and notes observant but non-Haredi Jews who do perform national service while also studying Torah.

"I'm very angry that the Haredim don't perform military service," she said. "This creates inequality. I am also committed to the Jewish law, but there's a proverb in Hebrew - 'The Book and the Sword' – it represents the scripture and the weapons together. That's the way forward, until the arrival of peace."

She maintains a small memorial in the neighborhood to soldiers from the area, both religious and secular, who were lost in conflict. Long columns of faces {