Former Towie star, English television personality Jess Wright kissed her younger sister Natalya on the lips in a loving birthday post. Model Natalya is celebrating her 23rd birthday in the first decade of August 2023 – and Jess shared a selection of snaps to mark the occasion. (Photo by Instagram)

Emergency personnel work at the site where a small plane crashed on a residential street in Waunakee, Wisconsin, U.S., June 21, 2023 in this picture obtained from social media. (Photo by Matthew Cash via Reuters)

A view of migrants on the beach at sunrise after a fail attempt to cross the Channel to the UK on a small boat, in Sangatte, near Calais, France on August 10, 2023. (Photo by Pascal Rossignol/Reuters)

A Ukrainian serviceman of the 53rd brigade fires a RPG-9 towards Russian positions at the frontline close to Donetsk, Ukraine, Saturday, August 19, 2023. (Photo by Libkos/AP Photo)

American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo is seen in Midtown on September 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Gotham/GC Images)

Actress Marilyn Monroe poses for a portrait in a bathing suit and high heels with a bottle of Coca-Cola in a glass on a table behind her in circa 1953. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Oded Balilty is an Israeli documentary photographer. He is an Associated Press photographer and won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2007. Photo: A Jewish settler struggles with an Israeli security officer during clashes that erupted as authorities evacuated the West Bank settlement outpost of Amona, east of the Palestinian town of Ramallah, in this February 1, 2006, file photo. (Photo by Oded Balilty/AP Photo)

Throughout the course of the long war in Afghanistan, Coalition troops have relied on thousands of military working dogs to help keep them safe, and make their jobs easier. The dogs are trained to detect explosives, to find illegal drugs, to search for missing comrades, or target enemy combatants. Not only are they active on the front lines, but behind the lines they serve as therapy dogs, service dogs, and loyal companions. They also share the same risks as the ground troops, suffering injuries and sometimes death on the battlefields. Gathered here are images of these dogs and their handlers in Afghanistan and back home, from over the past several years, part of the ongoing series here on Afghanistan.