In April, a military representative told a parliamentary committee that of 18,000 draft notices sent to ultra-Orthodox individuals, only 232 received a positive response.
Netanyahu's office announced shortly after 1am on Friday that he had met with a lawmaker from his Likud party who has recently pushed for a bill aimed at increasing the ultra-Orthodox enlistment and toughening sanctions on those who refuse.
The premier's office said "significant progress was made", with "unresolved issues" to be ironed out later. Netanyahu also faced scrutiny after he admitted to supporting an armed group in Gaza that opposes Hamas.
Knesset member and ex-defence minister Avigdor Liberman had told the Kan public broadcaster that the government, at Netanyahu's direction:
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was "giving weapons to a group of criminals and felons".
The European Council on Foreign Relations think tank describes the group:
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a "criminal gang operating in the Rafah area that is widely accused of looting aid trucks"
