Kind of in synch with some ancient beliefs about the region in fact.
More modern research has the world ocean rising in distinct stages as various large chunks of ice melt away with the rises taking place over a period of time that should have been sensible to the people "in the way".
Every time the ocean rises or drops the adjacent estuaries get flooded or wash out. That destroys mankind's primary "range" which consists of fertile flat plains filled with plants that feed herbivores. It takes quite some time for the flood plains and fertile plains to get re-established once the ocean level is stabilized. Until then it is inevitable that there will be serious population drops as well as a scattering of the remaining people into newer, but upland, districts.
This report brings the most ancient period of Middle Eastern "Gulf" settlement into contact with the "historic" period which begins with Sumer ~ on an "island" between the Tigris and Euphrates where game animals were abundant, and accessible ~ they could not run away so easily.
The writers suggest these now hidden islands as a sort of Ice Age refuge ~ and no doubt they were. At the same time they weren't the only place people could live ~ the whole region from the Gulf around to Sri Lanka and from there to the furthest parts of Indonesia ~ was above water, highly fertile, and long suspected of having accommodated the first stages of civilized life ~ it even has a name "Sundaland".