Washington -- A senior U.S. military official says there already are adequate forces in Iraq to handle the security situation, but additional forces are being identified to move in quickly should that become necessary.

The official at the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) in Tampa, Florida, answered questions from reporters at the Pentagon via teleconference following an increasingly violent period in Iraq in recent days.

The official, who briefed on condition that he would not be identified, said there are about 134,000 U.S. troops in Iraq now, up from 120,000 in the September-October time frame in 2003.

Reports about possible additional deployments to Iraq merely reflect prudent military planning, he said. Given the violent events of April 4 and 5 in a number of Iraqi cities and the potential for additional political demonstrations and violence, he said CENTCOM staff members have been asked "to at least take a look and see what forces are available out there in a quick-response mode, in the event that they should be needed if there was a widespread move in that direction."

Asked if Iraq might erupt into a full-blown civil war, the official answered, "We just don't see that happening right now."

He said coalition forces are focusing on disarming the Mahdi Army, a private militia associated with Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The plan to dismantle the banned militia, he said, will be carried out carefully and deliberately in such a way as "not to just go in with ... all guns blazing and hurt or kill or damage those folks that live in the neighborhoods and are innocent bystanders to all of this."

The briefer said a cordon has been established around the city of Fallujah to monitor the flow of forces going in and out. Operations are beginning now, he said, "to go seek out" those who have been attacking anyone, ranging from civilian contractors, Iraqi civilians and coalition personnel to Iraqi security patrols. Fallujah, described as a stronghold of former regime loyalists, will be brought under coalition control, he said.

"For the most part, the people of Fallujah, whether they support us or not," he said, don't condone violence. Instead, he said, they are hoping for an economic recovery.

The coalition is trying not to take any actions right now, he said, to antagonize those Iraqis who are seeking a positive future for their country. No one wants to do anything "stupid that would put more people into the camp of anti-coalition folks," the officer added.

The official also dismissed reports that characterize what is happening in Iraq as a Shi'ite uprising. What have occurred, he said, are actions by an outlawed militia in support of a not particularly powerful cleric. There is an arrest warrant out for al-Sadr, he noted.

Iraqis need to condemn those who incite violence, he said. And then the coalition needs "to deliberately go after the militia folks that are conducting these sorts of attack and [disarm] ... and take them apart and make sure that it is clearly understood that they are illegal and they are doing things that are outside the system of justice in Iraq." The Iraqis will have to help deal with the situation and charge or jail the perpetrators, the official added.