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.

“The Greek Civil War was fought from 1945 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece (ΔΣΕ) (Greek initials DSE), the military branch of the Greek Communist Party (KKE), backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania. It was the result of a highly polarized struggle between leftists and rightists which started in 1943 and targeted the power vacuum that the German-Italian occupation during World War II had created. One of the first conflicts of the Cold War, according to some analysts it represents the first example of a postwar Western interference in the internal politics of a foreign country, and for others, marked the first serious test of the theory of the so-called Churchill-Stalin percentages agreement. The first signs of the civil war occurred in 1942–1944, during the Occupation”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A Greek commando soldier, wearing a fur-collared jacket supplied by the Americans, waits for a guerrilla target to emerge during the Greek Civil War. (Photo by Bert Hardy/Picture Post/Getty Images). 22nd May 1948

“Annelies Marie “Anne” Frank (12 June 1929 – early March 1945) was one of the most renowned and most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Acknowledged for the quality of her writing, her diary has become one of the world's most widely read books, and has been the basis for several plays and films”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Childrens watch the wax figure of Anne Frank and their hideout reconstruction at Madame Tussauds on March 9, 2012 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)

US actor Ben Affleck and US actress and singer Jennifer Lopez arrive for the screening of the film “The Last Duel” presented out of competition on September 10, 2021 during the 78th Venice Film Festival at Venice Lido. (Photo by Yara Nardi/Reuters)

The singer Ciara attends ELLE's 27th Annual Women In Hollywood Celebration, presented by Ralph Lauren and Lexus, at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on October 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for ELLE)

Moruti Mthalane of South Africa is punched by Masayuki Kuroda of Japan during their IBF flyweight title boxing bout in Tokyo on May 13, 2019. (Photo by Charly Triballeau/AFP Photo)

People enjoying the hot weather on Brighton beach in Sussex, England on August 7, 2020. (Photo by Stephen Lock/i-Images)

British model Jourdan Dunn and London-based hair stylist Issac Poleon attend an event to celebrate the Maximilian Autumn/Winter 2022 collection in The Green Room at The Londoner Hotel on February 20, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for The Londoner Hotel)