The governor of Kandahar said he had warned NATO about patrolling the area where at least 38 civilians were killed Monday in a suicide car bomb that targeted a Canadian convoy in southern Afghanistan.

A Canadian soldier takes pictures from his damaged vehicle after a suicide attack in Spin Boldak, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on Monday.
(Allauddin Khan/Associated Press)

"We told NATO six times not to come in these areas because for the last two days, a suicide bomber has been circulating," said Asadullah Khalid.

"But they continue patrolling the area. We repeatedly told them not to come out until we arrest the suicide bomber."

While four Canadian soldiers were slightly wounded in the attack at a busy market in the town of Spin Boldak, 30 civilians were also injured, many of them critically, Khalid said. Three of the soldiers were released from hospital, and one will stay overnight for observation.

The town, about 75 kilometres south of Kandahar City and near the Pakistani border, is considered a stronghold for Taliban insurgents.

A military spokesman said the Canadian Forces decides where its soldiers will patrol.

"We regularly receive threat warnings and obviously we go where we want to, when we want to in our area of operation," said Lt.-Cmdr. Pierre Babinsky.

"We obviously take notice of these warnings, but our aim is to operate freely within our area of operation despite those."

Responding to concerns that the Taliban may be changing tactics, Defence Minister Peter MacKay said he would not describe the latest violence as an escalation.

"I would describe it as another example of, sadly, how determined the Taliban insurgents continue to be," he said, while visiting New Delhi.

But Liberal defence critic Denis Coderre disputed MacKay's assessment.

"There is an escalation of violence," Coderre said. The Taliban "want to impose themselves … It's part of their plan saying: 'We exist. We're growing. We're back. You didn't get us.'"

A Canadian soldier stands guard after a suicide attack in Spin Boldak, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on Monday.
(Allauddin Khan/Associated Press)

Abdul Hakim, a civilian who said he witnessed the attack, told the Associated Press that a white Toyota Corolla rammed the second vehicle in the military convoy as it passed through the bazaar.

One of the Canadian military vehicles was heavily damaged in the attack, Abdul Razeq, the Spin Boldak border police chief, told the Associated Press.

The Taliban claimed responsibility through its spokesman, Qari Yousef Ahmadi.

The Canadian military did not disclose details of the attack, but confirmed that a Canadian convoy was in the area and that no Canadians were killed.

"This was a cowardly and despicable criminal act, carried out by terrorists against Afghan men, women and children," Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier said in a statement. 

The attack follows Sunday's deadly suicide bombing at an outdoor dog-fighting competition in Kandahar, where more than 100 people were killed in the blast.

With files from the Canadian Press and Associated Press