CALOOCAN, Philippines—The battlefield of this war looks like any other bustling urban district in the Philippines.
The sidewalks are crammed with street vendors selling everything from food to underwear. Pedestrians zigzag through the roads, avoiding motorized rickshaws known as tricycles and careening jeepneys, the colorful converted jeeps that are the country’s most common form of public transportation. The air is thick with smog and heavy with the sound of blaring horns and screeching tires.
Set back from the streets are rows of makeshift homes stitched together by pieces of wood, corrugated steel and tarpaulin.