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An impending political storm over conscripting Haredi men into the Israeli army is threatening to undermine Israel's government and dividing the state.

Public opinion on the issue has changed profoundly in Israel following two years of hostilities, and this is now possibly the most divisive political risk facing the Prime Minister.

The Constitutional Conflict

Politicians are now debating a draft bill to abolish the special status awarded to ultra-Orthodox men enrolled in full-time religious study, created when the the nation was established in 1948.

That exemption was struck down by the Supreme Court two decades ago. Stopgap solutions to continue it were finally concluded by the bench last year, compelling the government to begin drafting the community.

Some 24,000 enlistment orders were sent out last year, but only around 1,200 men from the community showed up, according to defense officials presented to lawmakers.

Friction Spill Into Public View

Friction is spilling onto the streets, with parliamentarians now discussing a new conscription law to require ultra-Orthodox men into national service together with other Jewish citizens.

A pair of ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were harassed this month by some extreme ultra-Orthodox protesters, who are furious with the Knesset's deliberations of the bill.

In a recent incident, a elite police squad had to extract army police who were targeted by a sizeable mob of ultra-Orthodox protesters as they sought to apprehend a alleged conscription dodger.

These arrests have prompted the establishment of a new communication network named "Emergency Alert" to rapidly disseminate information through ultra-Orthodox communities and mobilize activists to block enforcement from taking place.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," remarked one protester. "You can't fight against religious practice in a nation founded on Jewish identity. It is a contradiction."

A World Separate

Yet the shifts affecting Israel have failed to penetrate the confines of the Torah academy in a Haredi stronghold, an religious community on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

In the learning space, young students sit in pairs to debate Jewish law, their brightly coloured writing books popping against the seats of light-colored shirts and traditional skullcaps.

"Visit in the early hours, and you will see half the guys are pursuing religious study," the leader of the seminary, the spiritual guide, said. "By studying Torah, we shield the soldiers in the field. This is our army."

Haredi Jews maintain that unceasing devotion and spiritual pursuit guard Israel's military, and are as crucial to its defense as its tanks and air force. This tenet was accepted by previous governments in the past, the rabbi said, but he acknowledged that the nation is evolving.

Growing Public Pressure

The ultra-Orthodox population has more than doubled its share of Israel's population over the since the state's founding, and now represents around one in seven. A policy that originated as an deferment for a few hundred yeshiva attendees evolved into, by the start of the recent conflict, a group of some 60,000 men not subject to the national service.

Opinion polls show approval of ultra-Orthodox conscription is increasing. A survey in July revealed that a large majority of secular and traditional Jews - including almost three-quarters in his own coalition allies - supported consequences for those who declined a call-up notice, with a solid consensus in approving removing privileges, the right to travel, or the franchise.

"It seems to me there are people who are part of this country without serving," one serviceman in Tel Aviv explained.

"It is my belief, regardless of piety, [it] should be an reason not to fulfill your duty to your country," added a young woman. "Being a native, I find it rather absurd that you want to avoid service just to study Torah all day."

Voices from Within a Religious City

Advocacy of extending the draft is also found among religious Jews beyond the ultra-Orthodox sector, like a Bnei Brak inhabitant, who lives near the academy and points to non-Haredi religious Jews who do perform national service while also engaging in religious study.

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

The resident manages a local tribute in the neighborhood to local soldiers, both religious and secular, who were killed in battle. Rows of faces {