▲ This undated file photo, provided by Yonhap News TV, shows a sign for the Goyang branch of the Uijeongbu District Court. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

GOYANG, South Korea, Aug. 14 (Yonhap) -- A district court has fined a photojournalist 5 million won (US$3,500) for illegally traveling to Ukraine in 2022 to cover the country's war with Russia, legal sources said Friday.

The Goyang branch of the Uijeongbu District Court found 46-year-old Jang Jin-young guilty of violating the Passport Act on Wednesday for the trip to Ukraine in March 2022, according to the sources and civic group officials.

Ukraine has been on South Korea's travel ban list since February 2022 following Russia's invasion of the country.

The court ruled that Jang entered Ukraine without applying for an exemption from the foreign ministry, adding that press freedom does not outweigh personal safety risks in a conflict zone.

Jang's lawyer vowed to appeal, arguing the ministry's exemptions do not apply to freelance journalists.

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