Residents said at least two drones had been flying over the area on Monday night but it was not clear if they had fired missiles.
Pakistan officials said the dead were pro-Taliban tribesmen, residing at the house of a local leader in the village of Khushali Tari Khel, near the town of Mir Ali.
One intelligence official said: "The identities of the dead are not ascertained but we had reports that suspected them of being linked to the Taliban."
The Pakistani army did not immediately comment.
It is unclear who fired the missile. Previous attacks across the Afghanistan border have been attributed to US-led coalition forces.
The Pakistani government rarely admits to US military action in the nation, as president Pervez Musharraf has continually publicly rejected US offers for joint operations in the territory.
A US missile attack killed several fighters in January 2006 and in December 2005 Hamza Rabia, an alleged al-Qaeda explosives expert, was killed by a strike in North Waziristan
Local residents said the latter attack was a missile blast, but the military said Rabia died due to one of his own bombs exploding.