Shortly beyond the cornfields of Brgy. Tukanalipao, site of the infamous Mamasapano encounter, lies a bustling public market. Pesticides, home implements, school supplies, and Muslim attire are being sold under tarpaulins bearing the sign of the UN High Commission on Refugees. Despite the veneer of normalcy, it is obviously a place accustomed to war. A family traversing the road had their personal belongings and a carabao in tow.
Pero malinaw ang mga ulat na kabilang ang al-Nusra Front (al-Qaeda, na naging ISIS) sa mga sinanay at sinuplayan nito ng armas. Libu-libong kasapi rin ng“moderate” na FSA na inarmasan ng US ang kalauna’y sumanib sa ISIS. Katunayan, nang bumisita ang beteranong war journalist na si Robert Fisk sa isang abandonadong kampo ng ISIS, nakita niya roon ang mga magasin at dokumento ng FSA.