A spotted owlet appears to be playing peek-a-boo near Rancharda Lake in Ahmedabad, India on February 9, 2016. The species is common across the Indian subcontinent. (Photo by Caters News Agency)

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.

Festival goers pose for photographers on the third day of Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, Somerset, England, Friday, June 28, 2019. Temperatures are expected to soar over the weekend as a heatwave hits parts of Europe, while the festival runs for five days and is one of the largest events of its kind in the world. (Photo by Joel C. Ryan/Invision/AP Photo)

A Shinto priest prays to the dedicated dolls during the Festival of Repayment of Kindness at Dairoku-tensakaki Shrine in Tokyo, Saturday, May 16, 2015. Traditionally, it is believed that the dolls can give good health and happiness to children by absorbing sickness and ill fate. The dolls are then sacrificed during the festival after they have protected their young owners. (Photo by Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo)

Istanbul-based Ali Gulec is a graphic artist with a difference. His surreal illustrations are like identikit drawings aiming to prosecute the material arts. Working on the margins of what is possible with his medium, Gulec's forms, figures, and situations are remarkable for their clarity and strength of purpose, and maintain an iconographic intensity that would make any rock band bereft of an album cover salivate with admiration.

A bull rams inmates seated at a card table in the Convict Poker event at the Angola Prison Rodeo in Angola, La., Saturday, April 26, 2014. Those competing in the rodeo have to pass a physical to be deemed strong and healthy enough, and thousands of others work year-round making arts and crafts to sell at the event, according to the prison's athletic director. (Photo by Gerald Herbert/AP Photo)

Models are seen at the backstage before the runway at The 2nd Skin Co. show during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Madrid Spring/Summer 2020 at Ifema on July 09, 2019 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Pablo Cuadra/Getty Images)