London, Cairo – The ISIS militant group released on Tuesday night a voice recording by its spokesman in which it threatened Donald Trump in what experts said was a test to the new US president and an attempt to create media speculation as the extremists lose ground in Iraq and Syria.

The 35-minute recording by ISIS spokesman Abou al-Hassan al-Muhajir included the first threats by the group against Trump since his election. It also urged its supporters to carry out attacks of “vengeance” against the US.

He said that Washington is now “bankrupt” in its war against terror, saying it should “apologize for its actions and withdraw or drown in the swamp of death.”

Major General Imad Abdul Mohsen Awadh, a consultant at the Nasser Military Academy in Egypt, told Asharq Al-Awsat that ISIS’s threat against the US is aimed at creating “major media uproar,” because it realizes that the worst is yet to come.

The situation on the ground for ISIS is very difficult because of the fierce resistance it is facing, he explained.

He added that whenever terrorist groups, like ISIS and al-Qaeda, begin facing problems on the ground, they resort to the media intimidation strategy. The latest threat against the US is evidence of this.

Awadh noted that ISIS no longer wields major power in Syria, especially since the crisis is nearing its end and a political settlement will be reached as demonstrated through the “Geneva 5” and Astana peace conferences.

The extremist group is also dealing with similar difficulties in Iraq after large areas of the city of Mosul have been liberated by Iraqi government forces, explained Awadh.