Mountie injured in suicide blast returns to Ottawa

An Ottawa-based RCMP officer injured in a suicide attack in Afghanistan is back in the capital, receiving treatment for his injuries in hospital.

RCMP officials said Sgt. Brian Kelly, 55, returned to Ottawa on Saturday after getting medical care in Kabul, Afghanistan and Germany. He is currently in stable condition in Ottawa.

Kelly was on his way to NATO headquarters in Kabul when a suicide bomber detonated a vehicle just outside the main gate on Aug. 15. The explosion killed seven people and injured 91 others.

Kelly, who is a 29-year veteran of the force, received surgery for shrapnel wounds to his legs following the attack.

He is now thanking Canadians for sending him their best wishes via telephone and email messages.

• Click to send your own message of support to Sgt. Kelly

Kelly arrived in Afghanistan in June to participate in a nine-month deployment through the RCMP's International Peace Operations Branch.

With files from The Canadian Press

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  Destroyed vehicles are seen at the site of a suicide car bomb explosion which occurred near the main gate of NATO's headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday Aug. 15, 2009. (AP Photo / Musadeq Sadeq)

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  U.S. soldiers are seen at the site of a suicide bombing, near the main gate of NATO's headquarters in Afghanistan, on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009. (AP / Saurabh Das)