British actress and model Elizabeth Hurley (L) and English actress Pear Chiravara in “Strictly Confidential”, 2024, directed by Liz Hurley's son Damian Hurley. (Photo by Backgrid USA)

People in costume as a Minecraft bee (left) and Crying Child from Fright Night at Freddy's 4 (right) at the Sheffield Anime & Gaming Con at the Mercure Sheffield in London on Sunday, September 17, 2023. (Photo by Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images)

During rehearsals, colourful puppets bring the Loch Ness monster to life on March 27, 2025 for the new musical Nessie, which transforms the mystery of the loch into a vibrant stage production. The show runs from March 28 to April 5 at The Studio, Edinburgh, before moving to Pitlochry Festival Theatre. (Photo by Fraser Band/Jam Press)

A basket of olives sits in an olive tree field in La Rinconada, near the Andalusian capital of Seville September 24, 2012. (Photo by Marcelo del Pozo/Reuters)

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.

Charli XCX performs at Hype Hotel on March 17, 2016 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Lorne Thomson/Redferns)

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)

Stray dogs stand on tombs in Diamond Hill cemetery in Hong Kong, China, 04 April 2017. According to the lunar calendar, the Qingming Festival is observed on 04 April . The Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, is marked by Chinese people by going to the cemetery to cleaning up tombs, bring flowers, and making offerings to their ancestors. (Photo by Jerome Favre/EPA)