It would be if Sadr commanded a huge portion of the population to qulaify as a faction in 'civil war'.
I would think you'd need to be at least 20% minimum and he is no where close. Hes a small time thug with influence in Sadr city mostly due to namesake and nothing else.
What I see here is him loosing even that support.
He tried to test the waters and exert some of that 'influence' he used to have, and the people didn't want to be ruled by his 'militia'. Demonstrating his influence beyond Sadr city not only EXTREEMLY poor (but acutally swung in the other direction to the point people will fight and die to keep him out)
are you in Iraq right now?
My hat is off to you if you are.
I remember about this time last year that the people who lived within Sadr City didn't want to be called citizens of Sadr City.
Of course then he got fragged by his own guys and we let him walk away rather than martyr him....
My understanding is that he controls Bashra