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.

Migrants prepare their food outside shelters in a muddy field called the Grande-Synthe jungle, near Dunkirk, northern France, January 12, 2016. The Grande-Synthe jungle is a camp of tents and makeshift shelters where migrants and asylum seekers from Irak, Kurdistan and Syria gather. (Photo by Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

A model presents a creation at the Lingerie Show-Forum 2016 international lingerie, swimwear, homewear and hosiery trade show in Moscow, Russia, February 24, 2016. (Photo by Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters)

A group of surfers ride the Bore Tide at Turnagain Arm on July 15, 2014 in Anchorage, Alaska. Alaskas most famous Bore Tide, occurs in a spot on the outside of Anchorage in the lower arm of the Cook Inlet, Turnagain Arm, where wave heights can reach 6-10 feet tall, move at 10-15 mph and the water temperature stays around 40 degrees farenheit. This years Supermoon substantially increased the size of the normal wave and made it a destination for surfers. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

First time gun owner, Jessie Palmieri holds a target she shot with a H&K VP9 9mm gun at the Ringmasters of Utah gun range, in Springville, Utah on December 18, 2015. (Photo by George Frey/Reuters)

People walk by a 3D video advertisement display of a giant cat that was recently installed in the famed Shinjuku shopping district in Tokyo on Friday, July 9, 2021. (Photo by Hiro Komae/AP Photo)

Police cars are seen overturned in the street in the framework of a demonstration against Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel in Havana, on July 11, 2021. Thousands of Cubans took part in rare protests Sunday against the communist government, marching through a town chanting “Down with the dictatorship” and “We want liberty”. (Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP Photo)

Sinaida Omondi of Team Kenya breaks away from Alena Tiron of Team ROC in the Women’s pool A match between Team ROC and Team Kenya during the Rugby Sevens on day six of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Stadium on July 29, 2021 in Chofu, Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)