Artists wearing Japanese traditional clown masks march during the First Konpira Festival at Kotohiragu shrine in Tokyo Wednesday, January 10, 2018. The shrine is dedicated to sailors and seafaring. (Photo by Eugene Hoshiko/AP 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 waste picker unloads garbage at a waste transfer station in Bamako, Mali, August 19, 2018. In the Malian capital of Bamako, donkey carts driven by young men like 19-year-old Arouna Diabate play a vital role battling the fast-growing city's waste problem. Every morning before dawn, Diabate hitches his donkey to a cart and sets off on his rounds, going door-to-door to collect household garbage which he delivers to a local waste transfer station for a monthly salary of around $35. “I won't be picking up trash with a donkey cart for the rest of my life, but for now people appreciate us because we help clean up the homes of Bamako”, Diabate said. (Photo by Luc Gnago/Reuters)

A diver wearing a Santa Claus costume feeds a sunfish to attract visitors at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium in Yokohama, suburban Tokyo on December 17, 2014. Christmas attractions will be held till Christmas Day. (Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP Photo)

A Romanian female soldier adjusts her helmet before taking part in weapons training with US Marines female counterparts at the Capu Midia Surface to Air Firing Range, on the Black Sea coast in Romania, Monday, March 20, 2017. About 1,200 US and Romanian troops take part in the Spring Storm 17 exercise, meant to simulate defense of the Romanian Black Sea coastline and urban areas. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

The aerobatic demonstration team of the Italian Air Force, the Frecce Tricolori (“Tricolor Arrows”), fly over the Basilica of Saint Mary of Health as they perform as part of a nationwide tour to show unity and solidarity following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Venice, Italy, May 29, 2020. (Photo by Manuel Silvestri/Reuters)

South Korean youths play Pokemon Go on July 15, 2016 in Sokcho, South Korea. South Korea is not one of the initial Pokemon Go released countries, nor is the game likely to be released officially any time soon as the South Korean government does not allow Google to use its map; however, South Korean game enthusiasts are now visiting a handful of loophole areas in the north eastern side of the country near the border of North Korea to join the global frenzy of Pokemon Go. (Photo by Jean Chung/Getty Images)

Cara Delevingne and Kate Moss attend the Burberry Prorsum show during London Fashion Week Spring Summer 2015 on September 15, 2014 in London, England. (Photo by Anthony Harvey/Getty Images)