At least 10 people are thought to have been killed after a suspected US drone fired a missile at a target in northern Pakistan.

A Pakistani security official confirmed that a missile had been fired on Friday morning, saying: "We have reports that more than 10 people are killed."

Ten more people were wounded.

The missile hit a house outside Miran Shah, the main town in North Waziristan.

North Waziristan, in the northwest of the country bordering Afghanistan, is seen by the US as a safehaven for supporters of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Tensions between the US and Pakistan have risen in recent days after the US sent in ground troops and carried out a number of aerial bombardments using unmanned drones in the area.

Pakistan argues that the US had not been given clearance to operate within its borders and that the US had violated the country's sovereignty.

The latest US missile attack brings to five the number of such raids in the past two weeks.