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An impending crisis over enlisting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israeli army is jeopardizing the governing coalition and splitting the nation.

Public opinion on the question has shifted dramatically in Israel in the wake of two years of war, and this is now perhaps the most explosive political issue facing the Prime Minister.

The Legal Struggle

Lawmakers are now debating a piece of legislation to terminate the special status given to yeshiva scholars dedicated to yeshiva learning, established when the State of Israel was founded in 1948.

This arrangement was struck down by Israel's High Court of Justice almost 20 years ago. Interim measures to extend it were finally concluded by the judiciary last year, forcing the cabinet to commence conscription of the Haredi sector.

Some 24,000 enlistment orders were issued last year, but merely about 1,200 Haredi conscripts reported for duty, according to army data given to lawmakers.

Strains Boil Over Onto the Streets

Friction is spilling onto the public squares, with lawmakers now debating a new draft bill to compel ultra-Orthodox men into army duty alongside other secular Israelis.

Two representatives were targeted this month by radical elements, who are enraged with the Knesset's deliberations of the bill.

And last week, a special Border Police unit had to rescue Military Police officers who were targeted by a large crowd of ultra-Orthodox protesters as they tried to arrest a suspected draft-evader.

These enforcement actions have led to the development of a new messaging system named "Emergency Alert" to send out instant alerts through Haredi neighborhoods and summon protesters to stop detentions from taking place.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," stated Shmuel Orbach. "One cannot oppose religious practice in a Jewish country. That is untenable."

A World Separate

But the shifts affecting Israel have not yet breached the environment of the Torah academy in a Haredi stronghold, an religious community on the edge of Tel Aviv.

Inside the classroom, young students learn in partnerships to debate Jewish law, their brightly coloured school notebooks standing out against the lines of white shirts and head coverings.

"Arrive late at night, and you will see many of the students are engaged in learning," the leader of the seminary, the spiritual guide, explained. "By studying Torah, we protect the soldiers on the front lines. This constitutes our service."

Haredi Jews maintain that unceasing devotion and spiritual pursuit guard Israel's military, and are as crucial to its security as its tanks and air force. This tenet was endorsed by the nation's leaders in the past, the rabbi said, but he admitted that public attitudes are shifting.

Increasing Societal Anger

This religious sector has more than doubled its percentage of the country's people over the past seven decades, and now constitutes a sizable minority. What began as an exception for a small number of Torah scholars evolved into, by the onset of the recent conflict, a body of approximately 60,000 men left out of the draft.

Surveys suggest backing for drafting the Haredim is increasing. Research in July found that 85% of secular and traditional Jews - encompassing a large segment in his own coalition allies - backed penalties for those who refused a draft order, with a firm majority in approving removing privileges, travel documents, or the right to vote.

"I feel there are citizens who reside in this country without giving anything back," one off-duty soldier in Tel Aviv commented.

"I don't think, regardless of piety, [it] should be an excuse not to perform service your state," said 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 Inside Bnei Brak

Backing for extending the draft is also coming from religious Jews not part of the ultra-Orthodox sector, like one local resident, who resides close to the seminary and highlights observant but non-Haredi Jews who do serve in the military while also maintaining their faith.

"I am frustrated that this community don't enlist," she said. "This creates inequality. I am also committed to the Jewish law, but there's a saying in Hebrew - 'The Book and the Sword' – it signifies the scripture and the defense together. That is the path, until the days of peace."

Ms Barak manages a modest remembrance site in Bnei Brak to soldiers from the area, both observant and non-observant, who were lost in conflict. Rows of faces {