PESHAWAR: A US drone attack on a militant compound in North Waziristan on Thursday killed at least five militants, security officials said.

Military sources said the drone strike took place in Lawra Mandi village of Datta Khel in the North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan, where the military is battling Taliban militants.

The drone fired two missiles targeting a house, killing at least five suspected militants, sources said.

“At least five militants were killed in the drone attack,” senior security official told AFP.

Another security official in Peshawar confirmed the attack and the casualties.

The area is generally off-limits to journalists, making it difficult to independently verify the number and identity of the dead.

North Waziristan is among Pakistan’s seven tribal districts near the Afghan border which are rife with insurgents and have been strongholds of Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, among others.

Military in June last year launched an all-out operation named 'Zarb-i-Azb' against Taliban militants in the region, following which parts of the tribal agency was declared cleared of militants.

The army has intensified its offensive since the Taliban's massacre of 153 people, mostly children, in a school in the northwestern city of Peshawar in December.