Kuwaiti singer cyberbullied after 'proposing' to Bill Gates in viral tweet

Kuwaiti actress and singer Shams Bandar Al-Aslami made local headlines after proposing to billionaire Bill Gates on Twitter.

Quote tweeting a tweet that showed the US business magnate warning governments to prepare for future smallpox pandemics and seeking to invest billions into research, Shams praised him and asked her followers what they thought about her proposing.

“This man is smart. He is the luminary of the current digital age. I like his foresight and knowledge of what will happen in the future. I am proposing marriage to him. Do you think he will accept?” the singer tweeted last week.

جميل هذا الانسان نبي العصر الالكتروني عاجبني تنبؤاته ومعرفته بلي جاي انا اعرض عليه الزواج تتوقعون يوافق؟؟؟ https://t.co/H2WLlHtQeQ

— #شمس ☀️ (@shamsofficial) November 5, 2021

The tweet sparked local controversy, grabbing the attention of many Gulf Arab outlets and causing social media users across the region to mock her.

Shams later clarified that she was joking and berated the media for misunderstanding her tweet.

"I understand that some people in the general public may not have enough awareness to understand my tweet was a joke, but press and media understand are also taking it seriously... how were you not able to pick up on the sarcasm?", she said.