Jordan Matter showcases their athletic prowess in everyday situations such as a martial artist shaving with a samurai sword, an ice hockey goalie shopping and a gymnast balancing from a street sign. Photo: “River View” – Jacob Jonas & Jill Wilson – Acro Yoga Specialists. (Photo by Jordan Matter)

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.

A girl struggles with winds from approaching Typhoon Matmo along the eastern coast of Keelung, northeastern Taiwan, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. (Photo by Wally Santana/AP Photo)

Clown/comedian/filmmaker Pierre Etaix attends The Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences' Presents “Pierre Etaix: The Laughter Returns” at AMPAS Samuel Goldwyn Theater on November 16, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Valerie Macon/Getty Images)

During his time in Ethiopia, New York-based art director and photographer Diego Arroyo spent time with the Hamar, Mursi, Dassanech, and Arbore Tribes. They, along with several others tribes, make up the 200,000 people situated in Africa’s Great Rift Valley. The people of the Omo Valley are still primarily herders and farmers, living an isolated and simple life. While they have yet to be truly touched by globalization, they could soon disappear. Their way of life is being threatened by a massive hydroelectric dam. (Photo by Diego Arroyo)

A person wearing a face mask is reflected in an art work entitled “A=V” by Ben Cullen Williams, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Covent Garden, London, Britain on October 16, 2020. (Photo by John Sibley/Reuters)

Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold of Norway shoots during the women's 10 km pursuit race at the Biathlon World Cup in Hochfilzen, Austria, Saturday, December 19, 2020. (Photo by Matthias Schrader/AP Photo)

A farmer runs behind a police officer during a protest against farm laws introduced by the government, in New Delhi, India, January 26, 2021. Tens of thousands of farmers drove a convoy of tractors into the Indian capital as the nation celebrated Republic Day on Tuesday in the backdrop of agricultural protests that have grown into a rebellion and rattled the government. (Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)