Islamabad ( CNN ) -- Two suspected U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan 's volatile tribal region left 15 people dead -- - including a Taliban commander -- on Thursday , Pakistani intelligence officials said . Among the 11 killed in one strike in the province of South Waziristan was a Taliban commander named Mullah Nazir , also known as Maulvi Nazir Wazir , the officials said . The drone fired two missiles in the Sarkanda area of Birmil , killing Nazir , the officials said . Read more : Not just for military use , drones turn civilian . Nazir was at odds with the Pakistani Taliban over a peace agreement he signed with the Pakistani government in 2007 . As part of the deal , he refused to attack Pakistani government or military targets , though he was believed to be behind a number of attacks that targeted the U.S. military . Read more : Top terror takedowns in 2012 . Nazir narrowly escaped a suicide bomb attack in early December . After the attack , he warned the Mehsud tribe , which includes Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud , to vacate South Waziristan or face consequences . Also killed in the strike were two of Nazir 's deputies , the officials said . The second drone strike targeted a vehicle in the town of Mir Ali in North Waziristan , killing four , the officials said . Read more : Senior al Qaeda leader killed in Pakistan , officials say . The drone fired a missile that struck the vehicle . It then fired two more missiles as people rushed to try to rescue the occupants , the officials said . In recent years , the U.S. government has sharply stepped up the use of drone attacks in Pakistan 's mostly ungoverned tribal region , widely believed to be a safe haven for militant groups fueling the insurgency in Afghanistan . U.S. officials say the drone strikes are an effective strategy against militant groups and insist civilian casualties are rare .
Two separate drone strikes target militants in Pakistan 's tribal areas , officials say . One strike kills a tribal leader with ties to the Pakistani government , the officials say . Another strike kills militants in North Pakistan , the officials say .