Following a large air raid by German bombers, local people, coming out of their air raid shelters found a bus standing on end in a large crater, in Balham, London, October 15, 1940. (Photo by 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.

In this photo taken Tuesday, February 2, 2016, asylum seekers gather round a fire as they cook a meal overlooking the temporary Altnes camp refugee camp on the island of Seiland, northern Norway. Waiting for their asylum claims to be processed, hundreds of people in emergency shelters in Hammerfest and neighboring towns are slowly getting used to the extreme climate and unfamiliar customs of the High North. They say they have adapted to the cold – the temperature rarely drops below minus 10 degrees C (14 F) along the coast, though it gets much colder further inland. It’s the darkness that throws them off. (Photo by Alastair Grant/AP Photo)

A handout picture provided by Solar Impulse on 18 March 2015 shows the Swiss solar-powered plane Solar Impulse 2, HB-SIB, taking off with Swiss explorer Andre Borshberg on board for the third leg Ahmedabad to Varanasi, of the Round-The-World, in Ahmedabad, India, 18 March 2015. Swiss explorers Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg attempt to circumnavigate the world flying with an aircraft, with a 72 metres wingspan, powered only by solar energy without a drop of fuel. (Photo by EPA/Solar Impulse)

British-based Ukrainians gather outside the Russian Embassy in London to protest against the build-up of troops in the Crimea region, on March 2, 2014. The demonstrators chanted and held banners demanding “Hands off Ukraine”. (Photo by John Stillwell/PA Wire)

Two Bulgarian tourists pose in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris on their last day in the capital on March 24, 2014. (Photo by Franck Fife/AFP Photo)

A woman jumps in the air as she poses for a photo during New Year celebrations in the Manhattan borough of New York, January 1, 2016. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

Entomologist Anna Platoni wears a hat made of tropical flowers made by florist Emma Reynolds with a Blue Morpho butterfly on her cheek to mark the opening of Butterflies in the Glasshouse at RHS Garden Wisley, south of London, on Janurary 15, 2016. (Photo by Luke MacGregor/PA Wire/RHS)