Ocean Rebellion activists dressed as Merpeople protest against bottom trawling during a demonstration ahead of the COP26 summit, in Glasgow, Scotland Britain, October 30, 2021. (Photo by Dylan Martinez/Reuters)

Drag queen Courtney Act (real name Shane Jenek) attends the Celebrity Big Brother male contestants launch night at Elstree Studios on January 5, 2018 in Borehamwood, England. The drag queen was left over-exposed on last show after her outfit apparently fell off. (Photo by Mike Marsland/WireImage)

A U.S. Army crew chief flying on board a CH-47F Chinook helicopter observes the successful test of flares during a training flight in Afghanistan, March 14, 2018. (Photo by Tech. Sgt. Gregory Brook/Reuters/U.S. Air Force)

Spain’s fans react after their team lost the match against Italy while watching the match in a bar during the Euro 2020 soccer championship semifinal match between Italy and Spain, in Pamplona, northern Spain, Tuesday, July 6, 2021. (Photo by Alvaro Barrientos/AP Photo)

Cameroonian para-athlete and taekwondo African champion Marie-Antoinette Ndassi (R) and Cameroonian taekwondo para-athlete Chemogne Teukam Guileine (C) practice some moves during a training session at a gym in Yaounde, on May 31, 2024. Taekwondo para-athletes Marie-Antoinette Ndassi and Chemogne Teukam Guileine will represent Cameroon following their qualification for the upcoming Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. (Photo by Daniel Beloumou Olomo/AFP Phoot)

A wild macaque monkey eats fruit dropped by pedestrians in a suburb of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on June 11, 2013. (Photo by Mohd Rasfan/AFP Photo)

Kite-surfers practice in a water reservoir at the shores of the Mediterranean sea close to the southern Israeli kibbutz of Ziqim during stormy weather, on December 20, 2021. (Photo by Menahem Kahana/AFP 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.