Santa spreads cheer to Turkish, Greek Cypriot children

Using a white U.N. helicopter normally reserved for peacekeeping patrols, "Santa" landed in Pyla, a village on a dusty plain. It is known as Pile in Turkish.

Officials from the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Cyprus told Reuters the event staged inside the buffer zone separating north from south was a chance to show peaceful co-existence on the eastern Mediterranean island.Â

Cyprus has been divided since 1964 when Turkish Cypriots were forced to withdraw into enclaves. Reunification talks resumed in September after a four-year hiatus, marking the first major push for peace since the failure of the U.N. reunification plan in 2004.

"This is a special time of year for children to have fun together, and demonstrates peaceful co-existence," said Jose Diaz, spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Cyprus. "It can't get more concrete than having children play together," Reuters quoted him as saying.

Touted as a model of co-existence, the United Nations often tries to encourage the two sides in Pyla to mingle more.

"Anything that brings children together is good, but it's only during such (U.N.) events that they do come together," Turkish Cypriot mother Havva Safak, 39, told Reuters. "We all want peace, and hope for better days."

Greek Cypriot school headmaster Iacovos Papachrysostomou said he wanted to see more contact between the two communities as he ushered seven-year-olds into a queue to receive a gift from some Turkish Cypriot children.Â

However, not everyone was impressed by the U.N. official's disguise.

"I don't believe in Santa," Andreas, a nine-year-old Greek Cypriot, was quoted by Reuters as saying. "He got dressed up and his beard is fake, but the presents are good."