Lightning strikes during a storm over the Ionian Sea in Calabria, Italy on June 27, 2016. (Photo by Alfonso Di Vincenzo/Pacific Press/Rex Features)

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.

Dance floor atmosphere at the Daily Front Row's Fashion Media Awards – After Party at The Wooly on September 8, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images)

A woman with a sign that reads in Portuguese “Being woman without Temer”, stands next to a police barricade during a protest against the gang rape of a 16-year-old girl in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Wednesday, June 1, 2016. In response to the assault, Brazil's interim President Michel Temer said that the country will set up a specialized group to fight violence against women. (Photo by Andre Penner/AP Photo)

A businessman walks past an empty baby Tyrannosaurus rex costume near Faneuil Hall in Boston, Thursday, May 17, 2018. An actor left the costume on the sidewalk as he went to retrieve his parked car, after entertaining midday tourists. (Photo by Charles Krupa/AP Photo)

An artist shows her hands after working on a wall as part of a campaign to call for coexistence and the renouncement of violence through the painting of walls in Sanaa, Yemen March 15, 2015. (Photo by Mohamed al-Sayaghi/Reuters)

Women look on as Sauber's German driver Pascal Wehrlein steers his car during the second practice session at the Monaco street circuit on May 25, 2017 in Monaco, three days ahead of the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix. (Photo by Andrej Isakovic/AFP Photo)

Palestinians scuffle with Israeli forces at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City on December 8, 2017. Palestinians clashed with Israeli security forces after calls for a “day of rage” as US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital sent shockwaves through the region for a second day. (Photo by Thomas Coex/AFP Photo)