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.

Models present Victoria Secret Fantasy Bras priced at $2 million each during a media preview of the Singapore JewelFest in Singapore October 8, 2015. The festival which is in its 13th year, sees over 42 Asian designers participating and over $300 million worth of jewels for sale. It opens from October 9 to 18. (Photo by Edgar Su/Reuters)

A female participant of the Bela Negara – “defend the nation” – programme applies camouflage face paint on another participant's face at a training centre in Rumpin, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia June 2, 2016. (Photo by Darren Whiteside/Reuters)

A chicken is seen next to the body of a woman killed by unknown gunmen at the market in a port area of Manila, Philippines October 28, 2016. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs and other crimes took he office on June 30 has claimed 4,447 lives, according to official figures made available by police on November 10. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

Devotees ride on the roof of a train as they return to the city after attending the final prayers on the first phase of Bishwa Ijtema in Dhaka January 11, 2015. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims congregated in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka as the first phase of this year's Bishwa Ijtema, one of the biggest Islamic gatherings in the world after the Haj in Saudi Arabia, came to an end. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

A mechanical horse-dragon made of wood and steel is presented to the public in Nantes, western France on August 26, 2014. This horse-dragon, created by the French artist Francois Delaroziere of “Les Machines de l'île” (The Machines of the Isle), is the hero of the show "Long Ma" which will be presented in Beijing on October 17, 2014 as part of the fiftieth anniversary of the relationship between France and China. (Photo by Jean-Sebastien Evrard/AFP Photo)

A visitor walks on a giant chalk artwork called “Wasting Time” at the Chalk Urban Arts Festival in Sydney on October 25, 2014. The picture is the biggest 3-D artwork created in Australia by two artists, Leon Keer from Holland and Jenny McCracken from Australia. (Photo by Peter Parks/AFP Photo)

A member of the mainly Christian “anti-balaka” (anti-machete) militia trains in the Boeing neighbourhood of Bangui, Central African Republic, on February 24, 2014. (Photo by Fred Dufour/AFP Photo)