ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- A suspected U.S. missile strike by a drone aircraft flattened a militant hide-out in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, killing 27 local and foreign insurgents, intelligence officials said.Several more purported militants were wounded in the attack in South Waziristan, a militant stronghold near the Afghan border where Al Qaeda leaders Usama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri are believed to be hiding.
Taliban fighters surrounded the compound targeted Saturday in the village of Shrawangai Nazarkhel and carried away the dead and wounded in several vehicles.
Intelligence officials said the victims included about 15 ethnic Uzbek militants and several Afghans. Their seniority was unclear. Two of the officials said dozens of followers of Pakistan's top Taliban leader, Baitullah Mehsud, were staying in the housing compound when it was hit.
The accounts of Saturday's incident could not be verified independently. The tribally governed region is unsafe for reporters. The U.S. Embassy had no comment, while Pakistani government and army spokesman were unavailable.