It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Fieldwork at 'Uruq al-Julaybah, on the shore of the ancient Mundafan lake in southern Saudi Arabia. Left: a researcher exposes finds along a survey grid line. Top right: a fossil on the surface of the ancient lake bed. Bottom right: a fossil being uncovered from the sand.
Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2026 – The Saudi Heritage Commission has announced the findings of an archaeological and environmental study jointly led by the Commission, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Griffith University. Megafauna remains, stone tools and rare plant material recovered from the 125,000-year-old lakeside site of Uruq al-Julaybah in Mundafan, southern Saudi Arabia, provide one of the most detailed pictures yet of prehistoric human life in Arabia. Together, the discoveries reveal how early people lived, hunted and used their environment during a greener, wetter period in Arabian history.
Published in Science, the study brings together KAUST researchers spanning geology, archaeology, botany and micropaleontology alongside colleagues at Griffith University and the Saudi Heritage Commission and several other international institutions. The findings add significant evidence to Saudi Arabia's deep human and environmental history and contribute to a wider understanding of early human presence across the Arabian Peninsula.
Researchers used satellite terrain modeling to map the approximately 340 km² ancient lake, which reached a maximum depth of 29 meters. Sediments, geomorphological data and aquatic remains indicated a relatively stable freshwater body surrounded by vegetation and open grasslands.
The team also carried out systematic grid surveys to collect fossils and stone tools, used two dating methods on sand and fossil teeth, applied 3D-refitting techniques to stone tools, and conducted microscopic and chemical residue analysis of tool surfaces. This comprehensive methodology provided direct insights into how early human populations lived and adapted during the last Interglacial period, a warm, humid phase approximately 125,000 years ago commonly known as Green Arabia.
The team documented more than 500 fossil specimens of plants and animals, including invertebrates, at more than 130 locations across the site. Animal remains included hippos, extinct long-horned buffaloes, camels, Arabian oryx, gazelles and ostriches.
Researchers collected 5,511 stone tools larger than 2 cm from the main study area. More than 98% were made of flint, and analyses showed the use of Levallois techniques in stone tool production.
The tools contain residues of a wide variety of plants, including some that are toxic. Traces of resin and woody tissue suggest the use of hafted weapon tips, while plant residues indicate the processing of tubers, bushes and palm leaves. These traces point to varied uses of plants for food and everyday tasks. Among the most significant findings is evidence of the potential use of toxic plant compounds in hunting technology, understood to be among the first such evidence recorded in Saudi Arabia, alongside some of the earliest evidence of palm-related vegetation found in the region. Together, these findings paint a picture of a population making diverse and sophisticated use of their environment.
What makes this site exceptional is that all of these elements (animal remains, stone tools and plant material) were found together in a single, dated context, allowing researchers to reconstruct in unusual detail the daily lives of the people who occupied this lakeside. The site provides a vivid and unusually complete picture of how humans lived in Green Arabia.
The findings also indicate that the shores of ancient Lake Mundafan brought together freshwater, animals, plants and raw materials during the humid period around 125,000 years ago. This combination supported a range of human activities, including stone tool production, the preparation of hunting equipment, the processing of animal and plant resources, and fiber working.
“It is very exciting to see how the collaboration of so many different specialists allows to reconstruct this uniquely complete picture of life, behavior and the environment in the distant past,” said Professor Frans van Buchem, KAUST Professor of Geology and co-lead scientist.
Dr. Faisal Al-Jibreen, a participating researcher from the Heritage Commission and a professor of Paleolithic archaeology, described the discovery in the sands of Lake Mundafan in the Empty Quarter as an important archaeological find that sheds light on the ancient environment and its relationship with humans and animals in southern Saudi Arabia’s early prehistory.
“This site gives us a rare and richly detailed view of how people lived in a landscape that looks nothing like Arabia today,” said Professor Chris Clarkson, co-lead scientist and Professor of Archaeology at Griffith University's Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution. “The combination of animal remains, stone tools and plant material in a single, dated context is what makes this discovery so significant.”
“Saudi Arabia has an exceptional archaeological heritage. Building Heritage Science capabilities in the Kingdom will enable us to turn the smallest traces into the biggest stories,” said Professor Laurence Hapiot, co-author and Head of Heritage Research at KAUST.
The research underscores the shared commitment of KAUST and its research partners to uncovering the rich prehistory of the Arabian Peninsula, providing pivotal evidence for our understanding of early human life, movement, and technology.
The Heritage Commission supported the study’s fieldwork during the 2023 season, contributed to research funding and facilitated scientific work. The collaboration brought together Griffith University in Australia, KAUST and King Saud University, alongside international universities and research centers specializing in archaeology, ancient environments, history and laboratory analysis.
Poisoned hunting weapons, megafauna and plant use at a 125,000-year-old Arabian paleolakeshore
Article Publication Date
12-Nov-2026
A fossil fragment exposed on the surface of the ancient Mundafan lake bed at ‘Uruq al-Julaybah, marked with a flag during the team’s systematic survey. The team documented more than 500 fossil specimens at more than 130 locations across the site
Sand dunes in the Empty Quarter (Rub’ al-Khali), southern Saudi Arabia. Around 125,000 years ago, during the humid “Green Arabia” period, this area held Lake Mundafan, a freshwater lake of about 340 km², and early humans lived along its shores.
Credit
KAUST/Heritage Commission
Ancient lakeshore reveals how early humans lived in Arabia
Researchers recovered more than 5,000 stone artefacts alongside fossil animal remains, providing insight into how early Homo sapiens adapted to and flourished in Arabia.
A new study has found people living in Arabia 125,000 years ago used complex technologies including composite hunting weapons, plant-fibre processing and possibly poison-assisted hunting, while making use of a freshwater lake rich in resources.
The analysis, accepted for publication in Science, examines the well-preserved prehistoric lakeshore site of ‘Uruq Aljelibah in Saudi Arabia’s Rub’ al-Khali, or Empty Quarter.
It challenges the idea that Arabia was merely a transit corridor during human dispersals, showing how people could settle and develop complex technologies there.
Lead researcher Professor Christopher Clarkson, of ARCHE, said the site lay beside a freshwater lake in the Mundafan basin, in what is now one of the driest regions on Earth.
The site preserves a rare snapshot of life during a humid period known as Marine Isotope Stage 5e.
Researchers recovered more than 5,000 stone artefacts alongside fossil animal remains, providing insight into how early Homo sapiens adapted to and flourished in Arabia.
“The lakeshore preserves evidence of a very different Arabia where freshwater, grasslands and trees supported people and abundant wildlife,” Professor Frans van Buchem, of KAUST, and co-lead author said.
“One of the most significant discoveries is evidence that some stone points were used as hafted hunting weapons,” Professor Clarkson said.
“This suggests people were manufacturing composite weapons made from multiple materials rather than simply using handheld stone tools.”
Several stone points showed impact damage consistent with hunting large animals, while microscopic analysis revealed traces of animal tissue near the tips and plant resin and fibres at the base.
Several points also contained chemical biomarkers linked to Acokanthera schimperi, the arrow-poison tree, which is known historically for its toxic cardiac glycosides.
Researchers identified other potentially toxic plant compounds on weapon points suggesting that poison may have been used in hunting.
“The residues give us clues to parts of these weapons that rarely survive,” Associate Professor Carney Matheson, of Griffith University, said.
“Animal tissue near the tips and resin and fibres at the bases help us reconstruct how the points were mounted and used.
“The chemical traces also raise the possibility that some weapons carried plant poisons.”
The distribution of stone tools closely matched clusters of animal bones, suggesting the lakeshore was a focal point for hunting and processing game.
Fossil evidence indicates the area once supported hippopotamuses, buffalo, camels, gazelles and oryx.
Researchers also found microscopic traces of plant materials including fibres, wood fragments and preserved palm tissue.
Evidence of cutting, scraping and fibre processing suggests these communities exploited a wide range of plant resources for food, tools and binding materials.
The findings add to growing evidence that Arabia repeatedly supported human occupation during wetter climatic phases.
A separate study published in Nature in 2025 documented recurrent humid periods in Arabia over the past eight million years, offering a longer environmental context for these discoveries.
“During wetter phases, Green Arabia provided the water and other resources that people needed to settle and develop complex ways of life,” Professor Michael Petraglia, of ARCHE, said.
“This site helps us understand what people did in those environments from making hunting weapons to processing plants and animals.”
“Sites such as ‘Uruq Aljelibah reveal the depth of Saudi Arabia’s human history,” Dr Faisal al-Jibrin, of the Saudi Heritage Commission, said.
“Working with international colleagues allows us to investigate this heritage in detail and understand its place in the wider story of human settlement beyond Africa.”
“Archaeological sites this old rarely preserve such a complete snapshot of daily life with hunting weapons, butchered animals, plant processing and tool-making areas all in one place,” Professor Clarkson said.
The study ‘Poisoned hunting weapons, megafauna and plant use at a 125,000-year-old Arabian paleolakeshore’ has been accepted for publication in Science.
(A) Aerial view of Tomb I. (B) Accumulation of small stones that sealed the access to the corridor. (C) Accumulation of stones sealing the final part of the corridor. (D) Section of the tumulus left in reserve, comprising several layers of stones and sand.
Credit: Vijande-Vila et al., 2026, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Iberian people continued using, and possibly building, massive necropolises well into the Bronze Age, according to a study published November 11, 2026 in the open access journal PLOS One by Eduardo Vijande-Vila of the University of Cádiz, Spain and colleagues.
During the Bronze Age, Iberian cultures moved away from large, collective tombs in favor of smaller individual burials. But this transition was not uniform, with some regions resisting this cultural shift. In this study, Vijande-Vila and colleagues describe the necropolis of Trafalgar in the Strait of Gibraltar as one of the latest megalithic burial structures in the region.
The necropolis of Trafalgar includes two known tombs, each with multiple individuals buried together. Radiocarbon dating of sixteen of these individuals demonstrate that both tombs were in use between 1875-1625 BC, indicating that cultures of southern Spain continued the use of large, collective tombs well into the 2nd millennium BC, among the latest known Iberian cultures to do so.
It remains unclear when this necropolis was originally built, but due to the lack of older materials recovered at the site, the authors hypothesize that the structure might have originated only slightly earlier, during the early 2nd millennium BC. Additional dating methods will be needed to confirm this, but if true, this site would be among the latest known megalithic projects to be built in the region.
There may be further undiscovered tombs at this site and therefore deeper insights into the history of Iberian burial practices. However, with the strong winds and shifting sands of the site’s surroundings, the necropolis is in danger of being buried again beneath the dunes. Future research will require ongoing maintenance to preserve this site.
The authors add: “The Trafalgar megalithic necropolis has revealed a highly significant finding. During the Bronze Age, an entirely new funerary space was constructed in a landscape dominated by the sea. We propose this hypothesis based on the absence of archaeological evidence for earlier occupation in the surrounding area. Until now, the evidence available for this period has primarily pointed to the reuse of megalithic monuments built during the Copper Age. This discovery offers a new perspective on funerary practices during this period and would demonstrate that new monumental burial spaces continued to be constructed”
In your coverage, please use this URL to provide access to the freely available article in PLOS One: https://plos.io/4zmZd0J
Citation: Vijande-Vila E, Becerra-MartÃn S, Morell-Rovira B, DÃaz-Zorita Bonilla M, Molina-Piernas E, Muñoz-Muñoz A, et al. (2026) The last builders of megaliths in the South of the Iberian peninsula? The Bronze Age necropolis of Trafalgar (Barbate, Cádiz, Spain). PLoS One 21(11): e0359220. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0359220
The last builders of megaliths in the South of the Iberian peninsula? The Bronze Age necropolis of Trafalgar (Barbate, Cádiz, Spain)
Article Publication Date
11-Nov-2026
(A) Longitudinal section created using Leica 3DR software, showing the orthostatic corridor and the burial chamber excavated underground (hypogeum); (B) individual in anatomical connection found at the base of the burial chamber; (C) secondary bone set found at the end of the corridor under the accumulation of stones that sealed the entrance to the burial chamber.
Credit
Vijande-Vila et al., 2026, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Graves goods Tomb I and II. A. Gold earring; B. Dark green barrel-shaped necklace bead, highly polished, biconical central perforation; C. Spherical silver bead; D. Cylindrical, planar, whitish-yellow necklace bead with irregular edge; E. Metallic arrow; F. Cylindrical silver bead; G. Copper earring; H. Ivory comb.
Credit
Vijande-Vila et al., 2026, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Wednesday, November 11, 2026
UK writer M. John Harrison wins Booker Prize for AI-tinged apocalyptic novel
UK author M. John Harrison won the Booker Prize on Monday for his enigmatic novel "The End of Everything", which echoes concerns about artificial intelligence in a darkly satirical depiction of post-apocalyptic Britain.
Harrison, 81, became the oldest winner of the award, which comes with a £50,000 ($67,000) prize and a boost in sales and profile for the winner.
A veteran of the British science fiction literary scene, it was Harrison's first time being shortlisted for the coveted prize, which critics have said was long overdue.
He beat shortlisted authors Marlon James, Douglas Stuart, Elizabeth Strout, Luke Kennard and Rebecca Perry, whose entries ranged from a queer epic unfolding in 1980s Kingston to a campus satire set in modern-day London.
"The End of Everything" came out "ahead in terms of both its extraordinary expert writing, but also huge ambition," chair of the judges Mary Beard told a press conference. Advertising
Harrison's 13th novel follows the beachcomber Phillip Tennent and his dementia-stricken, free-spirited aunt Marnie, set in the near-future on the windswept English coast invaded by mysterious objects known as the iGhetti.
An unnamed catastrophe plunges the characters into a murky post-apocalyptic world where the European continent seems to have disappeared and the arrival of the iGhetti, which can imitate humans, evoke interactions with artificial intelligence.
"One main point of the book is that if, or when, such an apocalypse comes it will be incomprehensible," Beard said, adding the book spoke to the present "moment".
"This is the politics of now seen through the lens of the future," Beard said in a statement.
In dream-like episodes this tight, 198-page novel alludes to Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the invasion of technology into daily life.
As is often the case with Harrison's writing, which has been described as genre-bending and singular, the plot counts less than the atmosphere, and the author's elliptical and poetic style heightens the feeling of gradual collapse. AI concerns
"Current affairs provided the themes and the satire," Harrison said of his book. "What happens when all of our expectations and explanations of the world become an ongoing disaster, but we still have to make a life?"
The author previously said he was inspired by the 2008 financial crisis, and wanted to write a novel about the "failure of explanation in society".
Born in Rugby, England, in 1945, Harrison, is the author of numerous science fiction books, including the Viriconium saga (1971-1984) and "Light" (2002), the first volume of a trilogy known as The Kefahuchi Tract, renowned as major works of the genre.
Little known to the general public beyond circles of science fiction enthusiasts, when he was shortlisted, The Telegraph newspaper wrote: "Finally, he's getting his due."
The theme of artificial intelligence has been on the judges' minds through the year-long selection process, which saw them whittle down 163 entries to a shortlist of six novels.
Beard pointed out concerns surrounding AI were "pretty high on this book".
"Phillip has got this object, this artefact, and it's not clear how sentient it is. It's not clear what it is," Beard said in a press conference to announce the winner.
In an earlier interview with AFP, Beard said the prize-awarding panel would have to think about the role of AI in publishing and writing in the coming years.
"I think for the future it's inevitable that that will be on the agenda. You can't bury your head in the sand about that," she said.
The other judges have talked about wanting to create a shortlist of books that were distinctly human, and could not be replicated by AI.
The prize, which celebrates the best work of long-form fiction by writers of any nationality, written in English and published in the last year, was awarded on Monday at a London ceremony.
Last year, British-Hungarian author David Szalay won the prize for "Flesh", his tortured tale of a Hungarian emigre in London.
Sunday, November 08, 2026
‘Enough. Have Mercy on Us!’ Suffering in Gaza Escalates as 70,000 Tents Destroyed by Floods
“We are poor people in Gaza,” said one man whose family of our lost their makeshift home to the storm water. “We want to live. We do not want to die from the bombing or the cold.”
Displaced people inspect the damage caused to their tents by heavy rain on November 7, 2026 in Gaza City, Gaza. Rainwater inundated tent encampments across the territory, worsening the already dire living conditions of many Gaza residents displaced by war. (Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images)
The suffering of the people of Gaza went from horrific and beyond comprehension to something worse on Saturday after storm waters overnight destroyed tens of thousands of tents and flooded tens of thousands of people into further desperation, all while the US and Israeli governments continue to maintain a cruel blockade on life-saving supplies despite a fast-approaching winter and a military occupation with no end in sight.
“At least 70,000 tents have been flooded & blown away by the torrential downpour and tempestuous wind in Gaza since last night,” reported Palestinian journalist Abubaker Abed, citing statements from health and media officials. “Families are shelterless. Food prices are soaring. Children are starving and shivering with cold. Caravans and mobile homes must enter Gaza now to avert this cataclysm.”
Gaza’s Government Media Office on Saturday, holding Israel wholly responsible for the disaster, said initial losses from flooded and destroyed tents were estimated at $3 million and that dozens of walls of homes had collapsed, resulting in injuries, while the threat of broader building collapse remained a serious risk.
In a statement, Palestinian Health Minister Dr. Majed Abu Ramadan said, “What is happening in Gaza is not a passing winter crisis. I urgently call on the international community, the United Nations, and health, humanitarian, and relief organizations to intervene immediately to save the lives of hundreds of thousands of displaced people in the Gaza Strip, following the flooding of thousands of tents with rainwater and the absence of basic safe shelter conditions.”
Al-Jazeera reports: According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), about 950,000 displaced people in Gaza are living in areas exposed to flooding. Low-lying locations and sites near the coast are particularly vulnerable, with more than 400,000 people living in areas considered at high risk of flooding. About 44,000 Palestinians are living in structurally unsafe buildings, while more than 4,000 buildings across the territory are estimated to require full or partial demolition due to damage caused by Israeli air strikes. About 294,250 families need shelter assistance ahead of winter, but the available supplies cover only 18 percent of their needs.
Ramadan further warned of “a catastrophic deterioration in health and environmental conditions, alongside growing risks of the spread of diseases and epidemics” if an emergency response was not rapidly and comprehensively deployed.
Video footage and eyewitness accounts offered a heartbreaking picture of those hit by the floods.
“We woke up and found ourselves surrounded by water,” a man named Mansour al-Sakni, 33, told the Middle East Eye. “The children were crying. I did not know what to do, and I started crying too.”
“We stood inside the tarpaulin shelter waiting for the rain to stop so we could try to push the water out of the room,” he said. “We are poor people in Gaza. We want to live. We do not want to die from the bombing or the cold. Enough. Have mercy on us.”
According to NBC News: The territory’s civil defence service said it had received 1,500 distress calls from displaced residents. Three abandoned houses collapsed without causing injuries, it added.
At a tent encampment in Gaza City, some people tried to repair their tents, while others used sand to reinforce them and prevent water from entering. Some were busy getting their children out of flooded tents.
Olfat Magdoub, a Gaza resident, tried in vain to sweep water away from her tent.
“This is the first day of rain, and of course we are already flooded. What will happen if it rains again the next day? This is only the first day and we’re already overwhelmed,” said the woman.
“Two weeks ago when it rained, I swear to God, I spent four days sleeping on blankets spread on the floor because the rainwater had flooded the bedding. Same now, the mattresses are wet so we sleep on the ground.”
While the flooding devastated the people and families trapped by the blockade of life-saving aid and shelter, fresh ire was pointed at the US government for refusing to rebuke the Israeli government for its wanton disregard for human life and suffering.
On the ground in Gaza, the anguish of Palestinians, including children, was on display in videos of the devastation and ongoing catastrophe posted to social media:
“How long are we supposed to live like this?” declares the young boy featured in the video. “I swear I don’t know what to do. Have mercy on us for God’s sake! For the sake of God, have mercy on us!”
Children are particularly impacted by the rainwater and vulnerable to the increasingly dangerous conditions imposed by the floods
“What remains of Gaza’s homes is collapsing under heavy rain, amid the ongoing genocide and deafening silence,” said Ramy Abdul, chairman of the human rights group Euro-Med Monitor.
“For the fourth consecutive year,” Abdul added, “Gaza remains under a suffocating Israeli siege that prevents even the recovery of victims’ bodies from beneath the rubble.”
