It was a close call for the commander of Canada's current Afghanistan mission on Thursday when a convoy he was riding in took a hit from a suicide bomber.

No Canadian soldier was injured in the attack, which left the suicide bomber dead.

Brig.-Gen. Tim Grant, the commander of Canada's current mission in Afghanistan, was in one of three vehicles in the convoy when the explosion occurred around 5:30 p.m. local time.

The vehicle that Grant was travelling in was not hit, said CTV's Denelle Balfour in Kandahar.

But the force of the blast caused one of two RG-31 Nyala vehicles to roll into a ditch, according to Maj. Chip Madic. Grant was not in that vehicle. Madic said there were at least four troops inside the Nyala, but none of them were injured.

Typically, generals ride in helicopters instead of alongside the troops in armoured vehicles. But Canada doesn't have a helicopter capable of operating in the region. The British and Dutch helicopters are available but are often in demand.

Grant is only days away from ending his nine-month tour of the war-torn country.

A minivan full of explosives detonated near the Canadian convoy which was returning from the town of Shur Andan, about 18 kilometres southeast from the Canadian base in Kandahar City.

"We're not sure if he pulled out from the side of the off-road to the main road as he saw the convoy coming, but we can say that this was a close call for Brig.-Gen. Tim Grant," Balfour said.

The force of the blast caused another one of the vehicles to roll into a ditch. Four troops were inside at the time of the crash but they didn't sustain any injuries.

"There were no casualties in the RG even though it flipped on its side, which is an indication of the strength of our vehicle," said Lt. (N) Desmond James, public affairs officer with the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar. "Everybody's fine."

British casualties

Meanwhile, in an unrelated attack in southern Afghanistan, a British soldier has been confirmed dead.

He was killed near the Upper Gereshk Valley of Helmand province during an operation against the Taliban code-named "Hammer." The soldier was shot at around 6 a.m. local time after coming under fire from Taliban fighters. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The British soldier was from the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards. His name is not being released for the moment at the request of his family.

The soldier was not the first British casualty over the last few days.

Another soldier, Lance-Cpl. Alex Hawkins, was killed Wednesday in an explosion during a routine patrol. The blast, which took place in Helmand province, also killed two other soldiers.

Wednesday was marked with heavy fighting between troops from the U.S.-led coalition and the region's militants.

Over 60 Taliban members are believed to have been killed in the clash which started when coalition and Afghan troops attacked a cluster of buildings in Helmand province. The buildings are said to be used by militants to launch their attacks.

The gun battle lasted 12 hours.

"Coalition air support dropped two bombs on the compounds with the greatest concentration of insurgents," a coalition statement said. "Both compounds produced significant secondary explosions immediately suggesting a large quantity of explosive material was present in each."

The coalition continued to say they believed the Taliban would stay and defend the area.

There has been a surge of violence in Afghanistan over the last two months. More than 3,500 people, mostly militants, have been killed this year, according to an Associated Press tally of casualty figures provided by Western and Afghan officials.

With a report from Associated Press