ABC's World News Tonight features Army Colonel from Nebraska City

NEBRASKA CITY - A Nebraska City native and current Colonel in the United States Army was highlighted in an ABC News Report called "The Hunt for ISIS Fighters" that aired Monday night on World News Tonight.

U.S. Army Col. Derek Thomson, the Task Force Iraq Deputy Commander, appeared with reporter David Muir to talk about being back in Iraq fighting a different enemy 16 years after the United States arrived to eliminate Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction.

"It's a very surreal experience to be back here in Al Anbar 14 years later from doing offensive operations out here against Al-Qaeda and Iraq," Thomson said.

The enemy for this deployment: recalcitrant ISIS fighters forming an enduring insurgency. Thousands of ISIS fighters, commanders on the ground said, are spread across Iraq and Syria -- sleeper cells hiding in the desert, the caves and blending into populations in town and cities, orchestrating attacks and trying to garner resources, according to ABC News.

Thomson's previous deployments overseas include Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn.

His parents are Dr. Dean and Keitha Thomson, and he has two siblings: sister Tammy Partsch and brother Darin Thomson.

Full report: ABC Exclusive: "The Hunt for ISIS Fighters"

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