“The Falles is a traditional celebration held in commemoration of Saint Joseph in Valencia, Spain. The term Falles refers to both the celebration and the monuments created during the celebration. A number of towns in the Valencian Community have similar celebrations inspired by the original in Valencia”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A person prepares for the burning of the “Ninot” caricatures during the last day of the “Fallas” festival on March 19, 2012 in Valencia, Spain. The festival, which runs March 15 – 19, celebrates the arrival of spring with fireworks, fiestas and bonfires. (Photo by Xaume Olleros/Getty Images)

Monty, (C) the Wadworth brewery shire horse gets given a pint of beer outside the Raven Inn in Poulshot as he starts his two-week annual holiday on August 3, 2012 near Devizes, England. (Photo by Matt Cardy)

A tattoo of Captain America drawn by artist Sean Karon on the leg of client Ron Raucci at the Hampton Roads Tattoo Festival in Virginia, on March 2, 2012. The tattoo was completed from start to finish in one five-and-a-half hour session and won the prestigious “tattoo of the day” contest. (Photo by Jason Reed/Reuters)

Havilland Mosquito KA 114 performs a low pass during an airshow commemorating the completion of its rebuild on September 29, 2012 in Ardmore, New Zealand. The plane was restored by Warbird Restorations at Ardmore Aerodrome and is the only flying Mosquito in the world. (Photo by Simon Watts)

Zombie enthiusiasts gather near the broadcast tower at Alexanderplatz before setting out on a “Zombie Walk” in the city center on October 27, 2012 in Berlin, Germany. Approximately 150 zombies, who had organized themselves through Facebook, walked and limped across Alexanderplatz, growled and moaned at passersby and performed their jerking dances. (Photo by Sean Gallup)

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.

An infrared portrait from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope which shows generations of stars is seen in this undated NASA handout image released February 14, 2013. In this wispy star-forming region, called W5, the oldest stars can be seen as blue dots in the centers of the two hollow cavities (other blue dots are background and foreground stars not associated with the region). Red shows heated dust that pervades the region's cavities, while green highlights dense clouds. (Photo by NASA/Reuters/JPL-Caltech/Harvard-Smithsonian/Handout)