Chinese Navy hospital ship returns home following humanitarian mission

HANGZHOU -- The Chinese Navy hospital ship "Peace Ark" arrived at a port in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, on Thursday morning after completing humanitarian medical services during its "Mission Harmony-2024" deployment to 13 countries across Asia and Africa.

Since its departure on June 16, 2024, the ship traversed over 30,000 nautical miles in 215 days, breaking records for the mission series as its longest duration and most extensive task.

The vessel visited countries including the Seychelles, Tanzania, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa, Djibouti and Sri Lanka.

During the mission, the ship's medical personnel treated 82,980 cases of common and prevalent diseases and performed 1,392 surgeries. The crew also participated in professional seminars, as well as cultural and sports exchanges with the host countries.

The "Peace Ark" is the first standard ocean-going maritime hospital independently designed and built by China. Since commencing the "Mission Harmony" in August 2010, it has visited 49 countries and regions, providing medical services to over 370,000 individuals.