Separately a Pakistani soldier died and five others were injured in the latest clashes between security forces and Islamist insurgents in the lawless borderlands with Afghanistan, the army said.

The missile hit a house late Monday in the North Waziristan tribal district, where thousands of Pakistani troops are battling Al-Qaeda and Taliban-linked fighters.

Residents said the missile was fired by an unmanned drone aircraft, of a type often used by US forces in Afghanistan, that circled over the area before the attack.

"A missile came from an unknown direction on Monday night and hit the house, after which 12 people died," a local administration official told AFP.

Intelligence officials said the dead were pro-Taliban militants, but residents said they were tribesmen staying at the house of a local elder in Khushali Tari Khel, a village on the outskirts of the town of Mir Ali.

The Pakistani army was not immediately available for comment.

"The identities of the dead are not ascertained but we had reports that they were suspected of being linked to the Taliban," an intelligence official said.

It was not clear who fired the missile but several previous attacks in the area have been attributed to US-led coalition forces based in Afghanistan.

Islamabad is loath to admit any US military action on its territory, given that President Pervez Musharraf has repeatedly rejected US offers for joint operations in Pakistan's troubled borderlands.

The United States and other western countries are increasingly concerned by unrest and extremist violence in Pakistan following the assassination last month of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.

Musharraf said during a visit to London on Monday that a tough stance on extremism was necessary because of incidents like the mass hostage-taking at a school near the northwestern city of Bannu that same day.

The incident ended peacefully late Monday when the gunmen released their captives from the school and fled into North Waziristan, the border of which is only about five kilometres (three miles) away.

Officials did not say if there was any connection between the missile strike and the school siege.

Missile attacks have claimed the lives of several militants in Pakistan. A US Predator drone targeted Al-Qaeda's deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in January 2006, killing several rebels but missing him.

Meanwhile on Tuesday in the neighbouring tribal region of South Waziristan, the army said a soldier was killed in heavy fighting at Shishamwan village.

South Waziristan is the stronghold of shadowy tribal warlord Baitullah Mehsud, who is accused by Pakistan and the United States of masterminding Bhutto's assassination on December 27. He denies any involvement.

Officials also said that five soldiers were wounded in rocket attacks in North Waziristan overnight.

Separately the interior ministry said around 50 militants were known to have died in a major army operation at the weekend to clear militants who had seized a key road tunnel near the northwestern city of Peshawar.

The rebels blew up a car in the tunnel in a bid to destroy it before they fled the area, the army said separately. The tunnel is on a route used to ferry supplies to US and NATO forces in Afghanistan via Pakistan.

earlier related report
Qaeda-linked militant killed in fresh Pakistan violence
Pakistani security forces shot dead a key Al-Qaeda-linked militant wanted for two major bombings on Tuesday, as 12 suspected rebels were reported killed separately in a missile strike.

The deaths came as Islamabad tries to quell a wave of violence sparked by the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto last month, amid international concerns for the security of elections on February 18.

In the southern city of Karachi, police backed by paramilitary troops killed top militant Qasim Toori and two fellow members of the banned Sunni group Jundullah (Army of God) in a raid on their hideout, officials said.

Two policemen including a senior officer also died in the shootout in a residential area of the crowded port city, they said. Five people were arrested including a man believed to be from Uzbekistan, they added.

"I can confirm he is dead," Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier Javed Cheema told AFP when asked what happened to Toori. Officials said Toori had one million rupees (16,200 dollars) on his head.

Toori, a 27-year-old former policeman, was wanted for a June 2004 gun attack on the then-top army general in Karachi which left 11 people dead, including seven soldiers. The general survived.

He was also sought for an attack the previous month when two car bombs exploded outside the privately-run Pakistan American Cultural Center, killing a police guard and wounding more than 30 Pakistanis.

Police said at the house they found a "huge" cache of rocket-propelled grenades, rocket launchers, submachine guns, 25 kilos (55 pounds) of explosives and a bag of ballbearings, which are often used for suicide bombings.

"Toori is a member of Jundullah and was involved in the attacks on the Karachi corps commander and the American cultural centre attack," senior investigator Mazhar Mishwani told AFP.

Members of Jundullah were trained in camps run by Al-Qaeda in the rugged tribal district of South Waziristan near the Afghan border, where Pakistan's army is engaged in an ongoing fight against militants, security officials said.

South Waziristan is currently the stronghold of Qaeda-linked tribal warlord Baitullah Mehsud, who is accused by Pakistan and the United States of masterminding Bhutto's killing on December 27. He denies any involvement.

A soldier was killed in renewed fighting in South Waziristan on Tuesday, the army said.

In the neighbouring region of North Waziristan late Monday, a missile that residents said was fired by a pilotless drone blew up a local tribesman's house, killing 12 people, security officials said.

Intelligence officials said the dead were pro-Taliban militants, but residents said they were tribesmen staying at the house of a local elder in Khushali Tari Khel, a village on the outskirts of the town of Mir Ali.

It was not clear who fired the missile but several previous attacks in the area have been attributed to US-led coalition forces based in Afghanistan.

Islamabad however never admits any US military action on its territory, given that President Pervez Musharraf has repeatedly rejected US offers for joint operations in Pakistan's troubled borderlands.

Musharraf said during a visit to London on Monday that a tough stance on extremism was necessary because of incidents like the taking hostage of 300 children in Bannu, near the site of the missile raid, earlier on Monday.

The incident ended peacefully late Monday when the gunmen released their captives from the school and fled into North Waziristan.

Meanwhile on Tuesday unknown people detonated a small amount of explosives near the house of Islamist opposition politician Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman in Dera Ismail Khan, which is also near the tribal belt, police said.

Rehman was in his house but was unharmed and there were no other casualties, police official Muhammad Bashir Hussain said.

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