Five Afghan civilians remained in Canadian care at the Kandahar airfield on Sunday, after troops assisted in the rescue and treatment of dozens of civilians wounded in a marketplace suicide attack.
On Saturday, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives within a crowded marketplace in Spin Boldak, a town near the Pakistan border. It's believed he was targeting a truck filled with Afghan border guards.
The blast killed three border patrol guards, five civilians and wounded at least 36 others.
Canadian troops had a sleepless night assisting in various rescue operations in the air and on the ground, CTV's Paul Workman said Sunday from Kandahar.
Twenty-one of the wounded, some with severe injuries, were transported by helicopter to the hospital on the Kandahar airfield where they were treated and stabilized. One patient died en route.
The bomber was driving a motorcycle and wearing a vest packed with explosives and ball bearings, which caused "penetrating injuries in different sides of their bodies," Maj. Jocelyn Dodaro, a military doctor, told reporters on Sunday.
Canadians also transported 15 of the wounded to a local Spin Boldak hospital for treatment.
The bombing occurred on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
"It was a busy Eid celebration night with the end of Ramadan. There were a lot of people out celebrating, families greeting each other and so it may have also been that civilians were targeted," Workman said.
There has been at least one ambush and two suicide bombings in Spin Boldak since August.
Access to proper medical care is extremely difficult to come by in southern Afghanistan, which made the assistance of Canadian troops all the more important.
As a side effect, the quick assistance of Canadians may help to shift the public opinion of troops in Afghanistan.
"It's good work by the Canadians and I'm sure it will be noticed by Afghans," Workman said.
Violence has killed more than 5,200 people this year, according to an Associated Press count based on official figures, the deadliest year since the Taliban were ousted in 2001.
With files from The Associated Press
