US drone strike in Pakistan kills 7

A United States drone targeted a compound in the lawless North Waziristan tribal region of Pakistan on Friday, killing seven persons just two days after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called for an end to the drone campaign.

The drone fired two missiles at a compound in a village of Shawal sub-division of North Waziristan Agency late tonight.

The compound was destroyed in the attack, security officials were quoted as saying by TV news channels.

A "high value target" was among those killed in the attack, a report on the website of the Dawn newspaper quoted intelligence sources as saying.

It did not give details.

On May 29, the deputy chief of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Waliur Rehman, was killed in another drone strike in North Waziristan.

Shortly after being elected Prime Minister by the lower house of parliament on Wednesday, Sharif had said the attacks by US drones in Pakistan's tribal belt should stop.

He described the attacks as a violation of the country's sovereignty.

The strikes by the CIA-operated spy planes are criticized by the Pakistan government as counter-productive for the war on terror.

US officials say the drones are a vital weapon in the campaign against militants.