Dancer Maithili Vijayakumar performs on the occasion of the launch of 2021 Diwali celebrations, at St. Andrew Square in Edinburgh, Scotland, Tuesday, November 16, 2021. The multi-cultural celebration will take place for the first time in two years in the center of Edinburgh on Sunday, Nov. 21. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/PA Wire via AP Photo)

Actors Alexandra Shipp and Vanessa Hudgens attend a premiere screening for “Tick, Tick . Boom” during the opening night of AFI Fest at TCL Chinese theatre in Los Angeles, California, U.S. November 10, 2021. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

Customers ride escalators at a shopping mall in central Moscow, Russia on March 2, 2019. (Photo by Mladen Antonov/AFP Photo)

In this Tuesday, August 27, 2019, file photo, a climber stops to take pictures of clouds while climbing towards the summit of Mount Fuji to watch the sunrise, in Japan. (Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP Photo/File)

Ukrainian serviceman fires with a heavy machine gun during a combat with Russia-backed separatists on the front line near Gorlivka, Donetsk Region on September 28, 2019. (Photo by Anatolii Stepanov/AFP Photo)

Pfc. Sebastian Rodriguez, machine gunner, Weapons Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Marine Rotational Force – Darwin, fires an M240 machine gun during a night squad-attack exercise, here, May 22, 2013. (Photo by Sgt. Sarah Fiocco/U.S. Marines)

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)

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.