Islamabad  - A suspected US missile strike hit a Taliban hideout in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal district near the Afghan border Thursday, killing at least four militants, an official said.

Two missiles believed to have been fired from a US-operated Predator drone struck a house in Norak, a small village in the region's Mir Ali area, at around 1:30 am (2030 GMT Wednesday).

"The pre-dawn attack killed four insurgents and injured a few more," an intelligence official said on condition of anonymity.

It was not immediately clear whether the assault was aimed at any high-value target.

North Waziristan is a known sanctuary of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, who use the rugged territory to carry out deadly raids on the Western forces in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Pakistani security forces are in the midst of a major offensive against local Islamist militants and their al-Qaeda comrades in the adjacent South Waziristan tribal region.

Nearly 400 hard-core fighters have been killed since the ground troops began their push on October 17, according to the military, which puts its losses at more than 37 soldiers dead.

The assault has triggered a wave of bomb blasts in Pakistan's urban areas, which have killed more than 300 people, mostly civilians. (dpa)