Two journalists — Phorn Sopheap of Battambang Post and Pheap Pheara of TSP 68 TV Online — have been sentenced to 14 years in prison by the Siem Reap Provincial Court, according to their lawyer.
The lawyer told CamboJA on 19 February 2026 that said the journalists were sentenced on December 17, 2025, in Siem Reap province, with the verdict announced on the same day.
On July 29, 2025, the two journalists traveled to the border area to report on conditions there and to deliver humanitarian donations to soldiers stationed along the border. During the visit, they posted a photograph taken at Ta Krabei Temple that showed landmines in the background. The image was later widely circulated by Thai media outlets.
Earlier, on September 10, 2025, the court stated that the two journalists had been arrested on suspicion of gathering information and taking photographs in a prohibited military zone near a battlefield. The court claimed that these actions could undermine national defense.
Description
Information
Number of attacked persons or entities related to media
2
Do they work as freelance or media?
Yes
Position in media
Other
Status of journalists
Full time
Gender
Male
Age
35-44
Country
Siemreap
Full name or name of group
Unidentified
Background (state actor or non state actor)
State actor (Police officer, Military officer, Government, public institution, etc)
Gender
Data not collected
Attack mention about gender background/sexual wording?
No
Date of incident
Type of incident
Detention - imprisonment
Please type the data source here (text)
The update case verified by CamboJA