A man participates in the Pacu Jawi, a traditional bull race, at Nagari Labuah, in Tanah Datar of West Sumatra, Indonesia, on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Yorri Farli/Xinhua News Agency/Alamy Live News)

Actors perform as zombies during the “Train to Apocalypse: No Way Out” event at a Light Rail Transit (LRT) train station in Jakarta, Indonesia, 13 July 2024. The Indonesian capital's LRT operator modified train stations into zombie apocalypse settings to promote the use of public transportations and entertain the commuters. (Photo by Mast Irham/EPA/EFE)

A woman and child look on at volcanic ash rising into the air during the eruption of Mount Ibu, as seen from Duono Village in West Halmahera, North Maluku province, on January 15, 2025. (Photo by AZZAM via AFP Photo)

A Balinese man performs a traditional dance at Art Center Denpasar on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on May 30, 2025. (Photo by Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP Photo)

A woman poses for photographs while Indonesian police officers burn seized various drugs during a press conference at the regional police headquarters in Banda Aceh on June 12, 2025. (Photo by Chaideer Mahyuddin/AFP Photo)

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 Pasola rider reacts after throwing his spear during the Pasola war festival at Ratenggaro village on March 22, 2014 in Sumba Island, Indonesia. The Pasola Festival is an important annual event to welcome the new harvest season, which coincides with the arrival of “Nyale” sea worms during February or March each year. Pasola, an ancient ritual fighting game, involves two teams of men on horseback charging towards each other while trying to hit their rivals with “pasol” javelins and avoid being hit themselves. (Photo by Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images)

A suspected street robber is arrested by a policeman after a brief chase in the streets, June 20, 2016, in Manila, Philippines. The president-elect of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, declared a war on crime and drugs after sweeping an election on May 9 and has been living up to his nickname, “the punisher”. Philippine police have been conducting night raids almost on a daily basis and revived a curfew for minors that had not been enforced for years, rounding up minors drinking on the streets. (Photo by Dondi Tawatao/Getty Images)