Islamabad, Jan 27 (IANS): At least 23 militants were killed in airstrikes by the Pakistani army in the country's northwestern tribal area of North Waziristan Tuesday afternoon, media reported.

The troops backed by jet fighters pounded five militant hideouts in Datta Khel area of North Waziristan, a semi-autonomous tribal area along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Xinhua news agency reported citing ARY News.

Quoting official sources, media reported that the killed militants include local and foreign militants, but their identities have not been revealed yet.

Tuesday's airstrikes are a continuation of the Pakistani military's armed offensive "Operation Zarb-e-Azb" in North Waziristan, in which over 2,000 militants have so far been killed, according to military sources.

Pakistan started the operation to clear insurgent bases from the region last June.

The army stepped up the offensive since the Taliban's massacre of over 140 students and staff at a school in the country's northwestern Peshawar city in December last year.