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 young Indian Jain devotee dressed as Lord Krishna participates in a religious rally organised on the occasion of Mahavir Jayanti in Kolkata on April 2, 2015. The most important religious holiday in Jainism, Mahavir Jayanti celebrates the birth of Mahavira, the last Tirthankara, which is generally accepted as 599 BCE. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP Photo)

A woman greets a street artist at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain July 8, 2016. (Photo by Eloy Alonso/Reuters)

National police transport an anti-government protester detainee during a protest against Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas March 13, 2014. Venezuela's state prosecutor said on Thursday the death toll from a month of violent protests had risen to 28, after the nation's top court ordered opposition mayors to dismantle barricades set up by street protesters. State prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz, speaking on the sidelines of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, also said 1,293 detainees had been released and 104 remained in custody accused of serious crimes during the anti-government demonstrations. (Photo by Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters)

An aerial view shows a sinkhole 3.5 km (2 miles) to the east of Solikamsk-2 mine in Perm region, November 20, 2014. Shares in Russia's Uralkali, the world's top potash producer, fell sharply for a second day on Wednesday after a mine accident that could reduce global supplies and push up prices of the crop nutrient worldwide. Uralkali shares have fallen 28 percent since Tuesday when it suspended work at its Solikamsk-2 mine, which accounts for a fifth of the company's output and 3.5 percent of global capacity, following an inflow of water. A sinkhole, stretching 30 by 40 metres (yards), found at an abandoned mine 3.5 km (2 miles) to the east, increased concern about the future of the mine because an inflow of water and the resulting sinkhole in 2006 forced another Uralkali operation to shut permanently. (Photo by Reuters/Press service of Uralkali company)

Emma the Maltese's fur blows in the wind as she rides in her owner's purse on 5th Avenue at Central Park in New York December 2, 2014. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

A handout picture provided by Global newsroom of Czech Martin Sonka (C) leading Nigel Lamb (top) of Great Britain and Yoshihide Muroya of Japan (down) along the Mount Fuji prior the third stage of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship in Chiba, Japan on June 1, 2016. (Photo by Predrag Vockovic/EPA/Global Newsroom)

Stranded cars remain in a flooded street during an intense rainstorm in Havana, on April 29, 2015. Two people were killed, three buildings collapsed and another 24 suffered some kind of damage due to the heavy rain that affected several sectors of Havana Wednesday. (Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP Photo)