Local officials said the missiles struck a vehicle in North Waziristan agency

A suspected US missile strike has killed three people in North Waziristan, near the Afghan border, Pakistani security and intelligence officials said.

"A US drone fired two missiles targeting a militant vehicle, killing at least three militants," a senior security official told the AFP news agency.

The official said that the attack took place in the Kharkamar area, 40km west of Miranshah.

The Associated Press news agency quoted two local officials as saying that four missiles had struck the vehicle in the Doga Madakhel village.

The officials said they did not know the identities of those who were killed.

The strike is the fourth such attack in Pakistan's tribal areas since US forces killed Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda's leader, in Abbottabad on May 2.

Friday's attack came as Pakistani lawmakers attended a joint sitting of parliament behind closed doors in Islamabad where they were to be briefed by General Ahmed Shuja Pasha, Pakistan's intelligence chief, and General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani, the country's army chief.

At least five people were killed in a similar US strike that targeted a vehicle in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan on Thursday.

The US does not confirm drone attacks, but its military and Central Intelligence Agency are the only forces that deploy them in the region.