Query over Africa claim

THE birthplace of the human race may be Mediterranean Europe and not Africa, a new discovery suggests.

Scientists base the claim on an analysis of two ancient fossils, a tooth and lower jawbone, found in Bulgaria and Greece.

Evidence indicates the apelike creature they belonged to was the oldest pre-human known, dating back 7.2 million years. Graecopithecus freybergi is said to be several hundred thousand years older than the most ancient potential human ancestor discovered in Africa, Sahelanthropus, from Chad.