October 25, 2009; London,UK; The mascot for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers watches a cheerleader during the NFL International Series game against the New England Patriots at Wembley Stadium. (Photo by David Wilkinson/Offside Sports)

Oded Balilty is an Israeli documentary photographer. He is an Associated Press photographer and won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2007. Photo: A Jewish settler struggles with an Israeli security officer during clashes that erupted as authorities evacuated the West Bank settlement outpost of Amona, east of the Palestinian town of Ramallah, in this February 1, 2006, file photo. (Photo by Oded Balilty/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.

DJ Evans Mireku Kissi (R) and fashion stylist Daniel Quist ride a motorcycle in front of a street side bar in Accra, Ghana. June 10, 2015. Young artists in Ghana's capital have evolved a new style that is turning heads and challenging accepted notions of African fashion. (Photo by Francis Kokoroko/Reuters)

Policewomen take a picture inside a tunnel under the Chao Phraya river at a Mass Rapid Transit subway station in Bangkok, Thailand, December 14, 2015. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

Visitors wear shirts with an image of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong at the Shanghai World Expo site in Shanghai, May 2, 2010. (Photo by Aly Song/Reuters)

A man walks beside a “Wrinkles Of The City” creation near the Berlin cathedral in Berlin April 19, 2013. (Photo by Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters)

An owner poses with her Maine Coon cat in front of a mirror during a cat exhibition in Bishkek on April 19, 2015. Cat lovers from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan took part in the exhibition. (Photo by Vyacheslav Oseledko/AFP Photo)