Militants fired rockets at a Pakistani paramilitary post in a tribal region bordering Afghanistan early today and killled seven troops.
It was the latest violence in North Waziristan, part of a semi-autonomous tribal belt where many al-Qaeda members took refuge after US-led forces ousted the Taliban in Afghanistan in late 2001.
The militants attacked the post about two miles southeast of North Waziristan's capital, Miranshah, after midnight, sparking a battle that lasted about two hours, local officials said.
Paramilitary troops returned fire, but it was not known if there were any militant casualties, said the officials.
The dead were five paramilitaries and two regular army troops, while several soldiers were wounded, one official said.
On Saturday, eight members of the Pakistani paramilitary force were killed in an attack by pro-Taliban militants in a nearby area.