Nigerians are waking up to news of yet more instability in Africa's most populous nation. Since the announcement that a coup plot had been uncovered, official sources have given few further details other than to say that investigations are continuing.

State-controlled media said Lieutenant-General Diya was arrested along with two other generals, both former members of the government who were dismissed in a reshuffle last month, and a handful of majors and captains. It may be significant that most of those arrested are ethnic Yorubas from the south-west of Nigeria.

General Abacha and most of the senior officers in the Nigerian army hail from the Hausa-speaking north. There is as yet no independent confirmation that a coup plot has taken place.

Some people are linking the alleged coup plot involving Lieutenant General Diya to a still unexplained incident in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, a week ago in which General Diya narrowly missed being caught in an explosion. Nigeria has been plagued by coups and alleged coup plots since independence.