A man stands by an installation depicting “2019” in the Red Square in Moscow, Russia on December 17, 2018. (Photo by Maxim Shemetov/Reuters)

A man stands near smoke billowing from a brick kiln in Karachi, Pakistan, 14 December 2018. According to the UN report, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have increased for the first time in four years. The United Nations Conference COP24, held in Katowice, Poland, until 14 December 2018, searches for a common position in the fight against climate change. (Photo by Shahzaib Akber/EPA/EFE)

Muslim women offer “Tarawih” mass prayers during the first evening of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque in Solo, Central Java province, Indonesia, March 22, 2023, in this photo taken by Antara Foto. (Photo by Mohammad Ayudha/Antara Foto via Reuters)

A racehorse is hoisted up before its operation at Veliefendi equine hospital in Istanbul March 3, 2015. A state-of-the-art hospital for hundreds of horses run by the Jockey Club of Turkey at Istanbul's Veliefendi racecourse is the country's oldest and biggest. Grooms and trainers at the equine clinic work with vets and nurses while owners hope their prize runners, often worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, will recover quickly and then run faster still. (Photo by Murad Sezer/Reuters)

Vehicles clog a highway during a hazy day in Beijing, China, Wednesday, February 26, 2014. Beijing remained cloaked in hazardous white pollution hiding much of its skyline Wednesday, despite the announced closures or production cuts at 147 of the city's industrial plants. (Photo by Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)

A man is seen wrapped with pythons, some which include the Albino Burmese Python, as part of a show celebrating the coming Year of the Snake in the Chinese calendar, while spectators look on, in Malabon city, north of Manila, Philippines, December 28, 2012. (Photo by Romeo Ranoco/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.

Storm clouds blanket the sky over Great American Ball Park as Starlin Castro #13 of the Chicago Cubs fields a ground ball in the fifth inning against the Cincinnati Reds as on July 7, 2014 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)