A US missile strike on Saturday killed at least four militants in Pakistan’s tribal belt, Pakistani security and intelligence officials said.
The missile struck a compound in Ismail Khel village, 40km west of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan tribal region.
“A US drone fired two missiles, which hit a compound used by militants as a training center,” a senior security official said.
He said that the identity of the militants was not immediately known, adding it was also not clear whether any high-value target was present in the area at the time of the strike.
An intelligence official in the area also confirmed the strike and casualties.
“The latest death toll is four now,” he said.
Residents said that the compound belonged to a local tribesman named Rasta Barkhan who had links with Taliban militants.
A local resident on condition of anonymity said that five drone aircraft made very low-altitude flights before the missile strike.
Officials say the attack took place in the stronghold of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a militant who fought with the Taliban when US-led troops invaded Afghanistan.
Bahadur is reputed to control up to 2,000 fighters whom he sends across the border but who do not attack in Pakistan.
It was the sixth missile strike by an unmanned US spy plane so far this year. Suspected US drones have increasingly targeted North Waziristan, a bastion of al-Qaeda fighters, the Taliban and the Haqqani network who attack the 113,000 US and NATO troops fighting in neighboring Afghanistan.
The US is increasing pressure on Pakistan to tackle militants who use its soil to launch attacks in Afghanistan and US officials have said that the highly secretive drone program has eliminated some top fighters.
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