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A looming crisis over conscripting Haredi men into the military is threatening to undermine the administration and fracturing the nation.

The public mood on the matter has undergone a sea change in Israel following two years of hostilities, and this is now arguably the most volatile political challenge facing the Prime Minister.

The Judicial Struggle

Lawmakers are reviewing a piece of legislation to abolish the special status awarded to yeshiva scholars dedicated to Torah study, established when the the nation was declared in 1948.

That exemption was ruled illegal by the nation's top court two decades ago. Interim measures to extend it were finally concluded by the bench last year, pressuring the government to begin drafting the ultra-Orthodox population.

Some 24,000 enlistment orders were delivered last year, but only around 1,200 Haredi conscripts enlisted, according to defense officials given to lawmakers.

Friction Erupt Onto the Streets

Friction is spilling onto the streets, with lawmakers now discussing a new conscription law to require yeshiva students into army duty together with other secular Israelis.

Two Haredi politicians were confronted this month by radical elements, who are enraged with the legislative debate of the bill.

And last week, a specialized force had to rescue Military Police officers who were targeted by a sizeable mob of community members as they attempted to detain a alleged conscription dodger.

These arrests have led to the development of a new communication network named "Dark Alert" to rapidly disseminate information through ultra-Orthodox communities and mobilize protesters to block enforcement from taking place.

"Israel is a Jewish nation," said an activist. "It's impossible to battle Judaism in a Jewish country. That is untenable."

An Environment Apart

Yet the shifts blowing through Israel have not reached the walls of the Torah academy in Bnei Brak, an Haredi enclave on the edge of Tel Aviv.

In the learning space, young students learn in partnerships to discuss Judaism's religious laws, their vividly colored notepads standing out against the seats of light-colored shirts and small black kippahs.

"Visit in the early hours, and you will see half the guys are studying Torah," the leader of the seminary, the spiritual guide, explained. "By studying Torah, we protect the military personnel in the field. This is how we contribute."

The community holds that constant study and spiritual pursuit defend Israel's soldiers, and are as crucial to its defense as its conventional forces. That belief was endorsed by Israel's politicians in the earlier decades, he said, but he admitted that Israel was changing.

Rising Popular Demand

The Haredi community has grown substantially its proportion of the country's people over the last seventy years, and now represents a sizable minority. What began as an deferment for several hundred yeshiva attendees became, by the beginning of the recent conflict, a body of approximately 60,000 men not subject to the draft.

Surveys suggest backing for drafting the Haredim is increasing. A survey in July showed that a large majority of the broader Jewish public - encompassing a large segment in his own coalition allies - favored sanctions for those who declined a enlistment summons, with a clear majority in favor of cutting state subsidies, the right to travel, or the right to vote.

"It seems to me there are citizens who are part of this country without giving anything back," one military member in Tel Aviv explained.

"It is my belief, no matter how devout, [it] should be an justification not to perform service your state," added Gabby. "If you're born here, I find it rather absurd that you want to opt out just to study Torah all day."

Views from the Heart of a Religious City

Support for broadening conscription is also found among religious Jews outside the ultra-Orthodox sector, like Dorit Barak, who resides close to the academy and notes religious Zionists who do serve in the military while also maintaining their faith.

"It makes me angry that this community don't serve in the army," she said. "It's unfair. I am also committed to the Jewish law, but there's a saying in Hebrew - 'The Book and the Sword' – it represents the Torah and the defense together. That is the path, until the days of peace."

Ms Barak manages a small memorial in the neighborhood to local soldiers, both from all backgrounds, who were killed in battle. Lines of images {