Mali’s military rulers have arrested a group of military personnel and civilians, including two Malian generals and a suspected French agent, accusing them of attempting to destabilise the country.

The announcement followed rumours in recent days of arrests of army officers. It was made by the security minister, Gen Daouda Aly Mohammedine on the local evening news on Thursday. He assured viewers that an investigation was under way and that the situation was “completely under control”.

The development comes as the military continues to crack down on dissent after a pro-democracy rally in May, the first since soldiers seized power nearly four years ago.

Few details were provided about the alleged coup plotters, what they had intended or the French national implicated in it, beyond identifying him as Yann Vezilier. Mohammedine said he had been acting “on behalf of the French intelligence service, which mobilised political leaders, civil society actors and military personnel” in Mali.

There was no immediate word from France, Mali’s former colonial ruler, on the Vezilier’s arrest.

“The transitional government informs the national public of the arrest of a small group of marginal elements of the Malian armed and security forces for criminal offences aimed at destabilising the institutions of the republic,” Mohammedine said. “The conspiracy has been foiled with the arrests of those involved.”

National television broadcast photos of 11 people it said were members of the group that planned the coup, and Mohammedine identified two generals he accused of being part of the plot, which he said had begun on 1 August.

One of them, Gen Abass Dembélé, is a former governor of the central Mopti region. He was abruptly dismissed in May, when he demanded an investigation into allegations that the army had killed civilians in the village of Diafarabé.

The other, Gen Néma Sagara, was lauded for her role in fighting militants in 2012.

Rida Lyammouri, an analyst at the Morocco-based Policy Center for the New South, said Mali’s rulers were well aware of discontent among the population and members of the military.

“The military leaders are simply not willing to let those grievances build into something more, like a coup, and therefore these arrests seem more of a way to intimidate than a legitimate coup attempt,” he said.

“It’s a continuation of the repeated unjustified arrests and prosecution of anyone speaking against the current regime. We have seen this behaviour against journalists, civil society and political leaders, so it’s not surprising to see this against military members.”

Mali, along with neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger, has long fought an insurgency by armed militants, including some allied with al-Qaida and Islamic State.

After two military coups, the ruling junta expelled French troops in 2022 and turned to Russia for security assistance. But the security situation remains precarious, and attacks by militants have intensified in recent months.

Gen Assimi Goïta was granted another five years in power in June, despite the junta’s earlier promises of a return to civilian rule by March 2024. The move followed the military’s dissolution of political parties in May.