Frank Groom was a British Army Lieutenant Colonel who fought in the Afghanistan War. Groom commanded the British forces in Kandahar, and, in 2009, he advised General Stanley McChrystal to cut Helmand Province loose, as it made up just 4% of Afghanistan's population, and the Pashtun region around Marjah was a Taliban stronghold. McChrystal ultimately ignored Groom's advice and masterminded Operation Moshtarak to capture Marjah.