What did Cambodia’s Supreme Court decide on the journalists’ final appeal?

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Cambodia’s Supreme Court rejected the journalists’ final appeal and upheld their 14-year prison sentences
Cambodia’s Supreme Court rejected the final appeal of two journalists, upholding the appeal court’s verdict and their 14-year prison sentences. The case involved Pheap Phara and Phorn Sopheap, who were convicted of treason after posting a photo taken in a military-restricted area.
The final appeal was rejected on June 25
The Supreme Court decision was delivered on June 25, with Judge Taing Sunlay, the deputy chief of the Supreme Court, stating that the court had decided to uphold the appeal court’s verdict. This meant the journalists’ final appeal did not change the outcome.
The convictions were based on information tied to a restricted area
The journalists were arrested in July last year after posting a photo on Facebook that appeared to show them with Cambodian soldiers at the Ta Krabei temple. The temple is on the disputed frontier with Thailand, and the photo was taken in a military-restricted area.
The Supreme Court upheld the same sentence already confirmed in March
Their convictions were upheld by an appeal court in March, after which they filed a final appeal to the Supreme Court. In December, they had already been sentenced to 14 years in prison for “supplying a foreign state with information prejudicial to national defence,” and the Supreme Court maintained that sentence.
The case followed border clashes and continued accusations
The arrest and conviction unfolded after border clashes between Cambodia and Thailand last year, which killed dozens of people and displaced more than a million by July and December. The broader dispute has included repeated accusations about landmines and truce violations, with Cambodia denying allegations that it planted new landmines in contested border areas.

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What did Cambodia’s Supreme Court decide on the journalists’ final appeal?

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