US missile salvo kills 15 in Pakistan: officials

MIRANSHAH: A barrage of US missile strikes killed at least 15 militants in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal district on Tuesday, obliterating compounds and vehicles used by fighters, officials said.

Pakistani security officials said the first strike destroyed two compounds and killed five rebels in Ghulam Khan village, 20 kilometres (13 miles) east of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan.

They said further strikes carried out by unmanned aircraft killed 10 militants minutes apart in Nawab village on the border with Afghanistan.

"At least 10 people were killed when US drones fired missiles at three vehicles," a senior security official told AFP.

"First a US drone fired missiles at a double-cabin pick-up truck and about 15 minutes later two more cars were struck," he said.

Security and intelligence officials in Miranshah and Peshawar confirmed the strikes and the death toll.