Since war broke out in the northern Ethiopian region of Tigray last November, at least 50,000 civilians have been estimated killed by Ethiopians and Eritrean troops in what activists and diaspora members are calling a genocide. For the first eight months the conflict was one-sided amidst credible reports of rape and other atrocities—but all along, Tigrayan guerrilla fighters were quietly mobilizing and training in the mountains. In June, the Tigray Defense Force emerged to rout the Ethiopian army, taking back the regional capital city of Mekelle in a stunning reversal that has has upended the balance of power in Ethiopia. The improbable success of this guerrilla war effort has been driven in part by something unexpected: the revolutionary music of Tigray. Emily Johnson has more from the Tigrayan refugee camps in eastern Sudan.

Listen at Deutsche Welle.