Predator drones can also eavesdrop on electronic transmissions so that US official could listen in on Pakistan’s response. –File Photo

MIRAMSHAH: A US drone strike on Monday destroyed a vehicle in Pakistan's Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked stronghold of North Waziristan on the Afghan border, killing seven militants, officials said.

The attack took place on the outskirts of Mir Ali, some 30 kilometres east of Miramshah, the main town of the district where US officials want Pakistan to launch an offensive against networks fighting in Afghanistan.

“A US drone fired two missiles which hit a vehicle. At least seven militants have been killed,” one security official in Peshawar told AFP.

Another intelligence official in Miranshah said two drones fired four missiles, hitting a van and killing at least seven militants.

“I do not know whether there was a high-value target. We received reports that those killed in the van were all foreigners,” he said.

Monday's attack was the eighth to be reported in Pakistan's tribal areas near the Afghan border since US commandos killed Saudi-born terror mastermind Osama bin Laden in a secret raid in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad on May 2.