Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox men gathered in downtown Jerusalem Thursday to protest plans to draft them into the Israeli military.

Israel shut down the major highway at the entrance to Jerusalem and deployed more than 2,000 officers, as tens of thousands of ultra-orthodox, known as haredim, thronged the streets.

One teenager was killed at the largely peaceful protest after falling from a building under construction next to the protest, police said.

Deep divisions in Israeli society over the current draft exemption given to the ultra-Orthodox has emerged as the most serious threat to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

The orthodox Jewish community largely opposes enlistment because they believe studying full-time in religious seminaries is their most important duty.

The broad exemptions from mandatory military service have infuriated much of the general public during the war in Gaza.

Over 900 soldiers have been killed since the war began.

Many reserve soldiers have served hundreds of days in multiple tours of duty, and the military has repeatedly sounded the alarm that more soldiers are desperately needed to meet Israel’s defense needs.