According to scientists, modern humans may have migrated from Africa to Arabia much earlier than previously believed, by up to 65,000 years. The migration was likely due to environmental factors rather than technological advancements. Researchers discovered ancient tools at the Jebel Faya site in the UAE which suggests a direct route from Africa to Arabia was taken, rather than through the Nile Valley or the Near East as previously thought. The findings from this study could lead to a reevaluation of how modern humans spread globally. The stone tools found at Jebel Faya were dated using luminescence dating to be between 100,000 and 125,000 years old. Hans-Peter Uerpmann from Eberhard Karls University in Tuebingen, who headed the study, stated that the quality of the tools indicated they were not made in the Middle East, but rather resembled tools made by early humans in east Africa. This suggests that people were able to leave Africa without any significant cultural advancements. The study, published in Science, proposes that environmental factors like sea levels played a more crucial role than technological advancements in enabling migration. By analyzing sea-level and climate-change data from around 130,000 years ago, the researchers determined that the Bab al-Mandab strait between Arabia and the Horn of Africa would have been narrower due to lower sea levels, providing a safe passage out of Africa before and during the last interglacial period. Uerpmann suggested that during low tide, it is possible that modern humans crossed the straits by walking or using rafts or boats. Previous beliefs that the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula would have prevented an exodus from Africa are challenged by a new study indicating that Arabia had become more hospitable during the last interglacial period, with increased water sources and vegetation. While the timing of modern humans leaving Africa has been debated, previous evidence pointed to the exodus occurring along the Mediterranean Sea or Arabian coast approximately 60,000 years ago.