When was the first successful migration of homosapiens? Where did it all begin? Read more about it in the following excerpt from the book “The Atheism Delusion” by Ahmed Al-Hasan:
The archeological study of artifacts confirms both the appearance of skills unique to Homo sapiens and his migration [out of Africa] around seventy thousand years ago. This was a successful migration of a small, select group from Africa across the Bab-el-Mandeb strait of the Red Sea and into the Arabian Peninsula, which led to humans spreading throughout the earth.*
During that time, the water had receded and a group was able to cross the strait. This select African Homo sapiens group advanced through the southern Arabian peninsula with the help of water springs. These springs were accessible because of the exposed coast, which was later covered due to a rise in sea level. Crossing the Arabian Peninsula along the coastline allowed them to bypass the “peninsula desert,” passing through modern Yemen and Oman until they reached the Gulf region, (an area currently covered by water).
At the time, the Gulf region was not yet covered with saltwater. Instead, this valley (the modern Gulf) was a hospitable, temperate place with rivers entering from the north (modern Southern Iraq and Southwest Iran). It was filled with streams, lakes, marshes, and forests. This was very important, as the earth went through a harsh period of frost and cold at the end of the last Ice Age. An ideal place for the first humans to live, it was abundant with fresh water, fruits, and food—arguably, the best location for them to thrive at the time. In this region, the number of Homo sapiens increased.
While some migrated to the rest of the world, a group remained in this valley until it flooded and filled with seawater. Scientific estimates place the timing of the Gulf area flood between 15,000 and 8,000 BC. After the flood, the survivors—descendants of the select group—moved to the uppermost part of modern Southern Iraq and Southern Iran by following the rivers that once flowed into their fertile valley, now a gulf filled with saltwater.
The Atheism Delusion, Chapter 3