Afghan bodybuilders compete in the Mr. Afghanistan bodybuilding competition in Kabul on July 10, 2024. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar/AFP Photo)

Models blow kisses backstage at the Red Beard show during MBFWI presented by American Express Fall/Winter 2014 on March 13, 2014 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by S. Alemdar/Getty Images for IMG)

A man exercises in the early morning on a hilltop overlooking Kabul, Afghanistan March 3, 2016. (Photo by Mohammad Ismail/Reuters)

An Afghan burqa-clad woman with children ride a donkey in Kishim district of Badakhshan province on October 12, 2023. (Photo by Omer Abrar/AFP Photo)

An Afghan boy carrying empty plastic cans, walks along a street in Kabul on December 21, 2023. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar/AFP Photo)

In this photograph taken on September 13, 2022, newly recruited Taliban fighters parade in armoured vehicles after their graduation ceremony in Herat. (Photo by Mohsen Karimi/AFP 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.

Afghan children buy breads from a bakery in Fayzabad of Badakhshan province on February 7, 2024. (Photo by Omer Abrar/AFP Photo)