The zone, also known as the Green Line (Greek: Πράσινη Γραμμή, Prasini Grammi; Turkish: Yeşil Hat), stretches for 180 kilometres (112 miles) from Paralimni in the east to Kato Pyrgos in the west, where a separate section surrounds Kokkina.

The Turkish army has built a barrier on the zone's northern side, consisting mainly of barbed-wire fencing, concrete wall segments, watchtowers, anti-tank ditches, and minefields.

When the coup dissolved, the Turkish Armed Forces advanced to capture approximately 37% of the island and met the "Green Line".

With the self-proclamation of the internationally unrecognized "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus", the Buffer Zone became its de facto southern border.

[citation needed] In March 2021 Cyprus erected a barbed wire fence on the Buffer Zone to curb illegal immigration.

A 2005 EU report stated that "a systematic illegal route through the northern part to the government-controlled areas exists" allowing an influx of asylum seekers.

Among the demonstrators was Cypriot refugee Tassos Isaac, who was beaten to death by the Turkish far-right group Grey Wolves.

[20] Another man, Solomos Solomou (Tassos Isaac's cousin), was shot to death by a Northern Cyprus minister during the same protests on 14 August 1996.

[21] Aged 26, Solomou was one of many mourners who entered the Buffer Zone three days after Isaac's funeral, on 14 August, to lay a wreath on the spot where he had been beaten to death.

As Solomou was climbing to a flagpole to remove the flag of Turkey, he was fired upon by Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources of Northern Cyprus Kenan Akin.

[23] During the demonstrations on 14 August 1996, two British soldiers were also shot at and wounded by the Turkish forces: Neil Emery and Jeffrey Hudson, both from 39th Regiment Royal Artillery.

The UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that "threats to the safety of U.N. peacekeepers and damage to U.N. property are unacceptable and may constitute serious crimes under international law.