A regular Saudi Arabian man became famous overnight after President Donald Trump accidentally tagged his Twitter handle instead of that of the intended Food and Drug Administration’s Sunday.
Abu al-Feda, whose Twitter handle is @FDA, became a meme among Saudi Arabians after President Trump tagged him and Republican Ohio Governor Mike DeWine in a post about coronavirus supplies production.
Highly recommended by Governor @MikeDeWine of Ohio. @FDA must move quickly! https://t.co/pLpI4CSs9H
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 29, 2020
He appears in an MBC Al-Ahsa segment, where he describes sitting with his friend making tea, and then receiving a lot of calls from his followers in different countries telling him that President Trump is asking for his help on Twitter. Al-Feda is from Rumaila, a village in Al-Ahsa in eastern Saudi Arabia.
US President @realDonaldTrump mistakenly tagged a Saudi Twitter account with the handle “@FdA” in a tweet about coronavirus, instead of the official Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which has the handle of “@US_FDA . Who gets the benefits of it?!@MBC24News @MikeDeWine @VICE pic.twitter.com/NgUwLJnwpn
— عـ ـ ـو ض الـ ـفـ ـ ـيـ ـ ـا ض (@Awad_alfayadh) March 30, 2020
“I did not expect this, I never thought I would reach the American community,” Al-Feda said in the segment.
Al-Feda has since become a sensation in Saudi Arabia, his face superimposed on images of world leaders and other government officials meeting with President Trump.
And then the memes started to come in…#AbuAlFidaSaga pic.twitter.com/a2LPK6o8vO
— Jenan Moussa (@jenanmoussa) March 31, 2020
Here is our @FDA coming to rescue Ohio state to answer the call of duty ASAP ! ????????????????#ابو_الفدا pic.twitter.com/h5lTTGZ8GE
— MohdAb ???????? (@MohdAb15) March 29, 2020
“When Trump asked me for help, I assured him that I will help and rescue him,” he said in the segment. “I decided with my friends to send some aid to America, food and fridges.” (RELATED: China Was Lauded As New ‘Global Leader’ For Distributing Medical Equipment To Fight Coronavirus, But Most Of That Equipment Is Reportedly Defective)