Daraa, Southern Syria, (SANA)-1200 pieces of flint stones dating back to 250, 000 years ago were unearthed at al-Sharar Valley near Daraa, southern Syria.

The pieces were discovered by the expedition of Damascus University in cooperation with the Directorate of Antiquities and Museums in Daraa Governorate. Head of the expedition Prof. Ahmad Diab said the findings prove that the Acholic and Mousteric civilizations existed in Horan, proved to be, in light of the findings, one of the most important and old-inhabited places in Syria.

Prof. Diab indicated that the area where the study was done enjoys lime characteristics and rain-fed agriculture, especially olives, in addition to its proximity to al-Zaidi Valley, one of the most important places of residence for the ancient men where dozens of caves and grottos are found.

He stressed the importance of cooperation between these missions and the Antiquities Directorates in the governorates to discover more on the history of Syria, and thus exploring the civilizations that were prevalent thousand of years ago.

For his part, archeological researcher Yaser Abu Nokta said the Directorate has been working since 1999 to explore all the ancient places of residence in Horan area.

The expedition discovered a set of stone tools belonging to many pre-historic phases, especially the Paleolithic age, in addition to a number of pieces dating back to the Neolithic age, indicating that there is scarcity in the findings which date back to the Paleolithic era.

''Hence the importance of these missions in pursuing the discoveries of the directorate seven years ago at al-Maisari site, 4 km southeast of Daraa, one of the most important sites dating back to the Paleolithic Age and Neolithic Age (8000-500 B.C.),'' Abu Nokta added.

Manal Ismael/al-Ibrahim