AFP - Three missiles fired by US drone aircraft killed five militants Monday in Pakistan's northwest tribal belt, a bastion of Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked fighters, security officials said.

The attack happened in Miranshah, the main town of North Waziristan, a militant stronghold near the Afghan border.

"Five people have been killed and three wounded in the attack. It was an American drone attack," an intelligence official in Miranshah told AFP by telephone.

A security official in Peshawar confirmed the strike saying the missiles hit militants gathered in a compound in the town, while residents said missiles struck two different buildings close to each other in the main bazaar.

"I was in the mosque when I heard three huge explosions. The electricity was disconnected after the explosions," one resident told AFP by telephone requesting anonymity.

"Two drones fired three missiles in Miranshah bazaar. Two buildings in the centre of the bazaar were hit and destroyed in the attack," he added.

A US drone strike in Miranshah in February killed Mohammed Haqqani, a brother of Al-Qaeda-linked warlord Sirajuddin Haqqani, whose network is fighting against US and local forces in neighbouring Afghanistan.