Cambodia Supreme Court upholds jail sentences for two journalists accused of revealing military secrets

June 25 (Reuters) – Cambodia’s Supreme Court has upheld the sentences of two journalists jailed last year on charges of revealing military secrets during the country’s border clashes with Thailand, their lawyer’s office said on Thursday.

The two reporters, Phorn Sopheap, 39, and Pheap Pheara, 41, were working for the local news outlet TSP 68 TV Online.

• The two journalists were both jailed for 14 years by the Siem Reap Provincial Court last December after being convicted of “supplying a foreign state with information prejudicial to national defence” under Article 445 of Cambodia’s Criminal Code.

• They were arrested separately on July 31, 2025 after returning from an assignment in Oddar Meanchey province, which borders Thailand and was the location of some of the fighting last year.

• They were accused of producing content that revealed Cambodia’s military positions and strategies during the conflict.

• Their sentences were upheld by the Battambang Appeal Court in March, leading to their final appeal in the Supreme Court. The final ruling on Thursday can be overturned only by the king.

• Cambodia has come under international criticism for arresting activists, environmental campaigners and journalists, including an award-winning reporter involved in investigating corruption and online scam centres in the country.

• Cambodia’s press freedom rating was downgraded by the U.S.-based advocacy group Freedom House this year because “virtually all independent media outlets in the country have closed”.

(Reporting by Reuters staff, Writing by David Stanway, Editing by Timothy Heritage)