Facts:
On October 22, 1946, two British cruisers and two destroyers entered the North Corfu Strait. The channel was under the jurisdiction of the Albanian waters which is regarded as safe. One of the destroyers, named Saumarez, when off Saranda, struck a mine and was gravely damaged. The other destroyer, the Volage, was sent to her assistance and, while towing her, struck another mine and was also severely damaged. Forty-five British officers and sailors lost their lives, and forty-two-others were wounded.
Before this instance, An incident had already occurred in these waters on May 15th, 1946: an Albanian battery had fired in the direction of two British cruisers. The United Kingdom Government had protested, stating that innocent passage through straits is a right recognized by international law; the Albanian Government had replied that foreign warships and merchant vessels had no right to pass through Albanian territorial waters without prior authorization; and on August 2nd, 1946, the United Kingdom Government had replied that if, in the future, fire was opened on a British warship passing through the channel, the fire would be returned.
Issue:
(1) Whether or not Albania is responsible for the explosions, and is there a duty to pay compensation?
(2) Whether or not the United Kingdom violated International law by the acts of its Navy in Albanian waters.
(3) Whether or not the United Kingdom has a right for innocent passage?
Held
(1) Yes. The court held and declared that the Albania was responsible to the incident. It was reasoned that from all the facts and observations mentioned above, the Court draws the conclusion that the laying of the minefield could not have been accomplished without the knowledge of Albania. As regards the obligations resulting for her from this knowledge, they are not disputed. It was her duty to notify shipping and specially to warn the ships proceeding through the Strait on October 22nd of the danger to which they were exposed. In fact, nothing was attempted by Albania to prevent the disaster, and these grave omissions involve her international responsibility.
(2) No. The court held that the United Kingdom did not violate the sovereignty of the People’s Republic of Albania by reason of the acts of the British Navy in Albanian waters on October 22, 1946. It is because Court’s decision was based on its determination that the character of an international strait was determined by its connection of two parts of the high seas, and that the strait was used for international navigation and the burden of proof had rested on the United Kingdom. The Albanian claim to make the passage of ships conditional on a prior authorization conflicts with the generally admitted principle that States, in time of peace, have a right to send their warships through straits used for international navigation between two parts of the high seas, provided that the passage is innocent. For our information
(3) Yes. the Court found in favor of the United Kingdom, which held that a right to innocent passage existed during times of peace through straits like the Corfu Channel, which connected two parts of the high seas.
The Court accepted that some Albanian regulation of passage through the Channel would have been acceptable, but not to the extent of demanding prior authorization, or of barring the passage of warships outright.
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https://www.icj-cij.org/en/case/1/summaries
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