SPORADIC heavy gunfire was heard before dawn on Wednesday on the outskirts of Freetown, Sierra Leone. Sierra Leonean Information Minister Julius Spencer said the strikes were a “pre-emptive” measure by troops of the Nigerian-led Ecomog intervention force. “Everything is under control and there is no danger to the capital,” Spencer said in a local radio broadcast. Security sources said Ecomog is firing at suspected rebel bases. In February, Ecomog toppled a junta which included the rebel Revolutionary United Front. Many of the ousted fighters are still at large and have waged a campaign of terror against civilians.