Josef Tödtling – Longest duration full-body burn (without oxygen) Guinness World Records 2016. Location: Styria, Austria. (Photo by Richard Bradbury/Guinness World Records)

Actress Zendaya arrives at the 27th Annual Kids' Choice Awards in Los Angeles, California March 29, 2014. (Photo by Danny Moloshok/Reuters)

A reveler strikes a pose during an unofficial carnival block party referred to as “blocos”, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, February 26, 2022. City Hall banned all blocos, the tightly packed street parties attended by those who cannot or don't want to buy pricey tickets for the official parade at the Sambadrome, due to a wave of the Omicron variant. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/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.

Araya A. Hargate, nickname Chompoo poses on the red carpet for the screening of the film “Les Miserables” during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 15, 2019 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Stephane Mahe/Reuters)

Residents carry an injured woman rescued from a collapsed house in Funing county in Yancheng city of eastern China's Jiangsu Province on Thursday June 23, 2016. A powerful tornado hit Thursday, with reports of dozens killed and large numbers of buildings destroyed in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu, according to state media. (Photo by Chinatopix via AP Photo)

A huge colony of Pacific Walrus on Arakamchechen Island in the Northern Bering Sea. (Photo by Francois Gohier/Ardea/Caters News)

“After an afternoon of hiking and exploring the caves of Rhossili Bay, West Glamorgan, we caught the sun breaking through the clouds”. (Photo by Megan Warren-Davis/The Guardian)