The General Labor Confederation was on Monday gearing up for a strike that it plans to hold later in the week as its demand for more than doubling the minimum wage is not likely to be approved by the government and business leaders.

GLC President Ghassan Ghosn told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) that labor unions would hold the nationwide strike on Wednesday if its calls for increasing wages to LL1,250,000 did not receive any support.

The March 14-led opposition warned against any attempt by the March 8 forces to obstruct the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon probing the assassination of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, An Nahar newspaper reported on Monday.

High-ranking opposition sources said that March 8 is “trapping” PM Najib Miqati to subject the funding issue to vote in the cabinet or turn the file into the parliament.

Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun stressed on Monday that his parliamentary bloc fully rejects the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in a stance that he described as independent from the position of other parties.

“No to the funding of the court no matter what the stance of our political allies are,” Aoun told An Nahar daily in an interview published Monday.

General Security Chief Abbas Ibrahim visited Syria on Sunday to offer condolences for the Syrian Mufti on his son's assassination last week.

The Mufti appreciated the condolences, and said that the Syrians are paying a high price on "our positions which support the resistance."

Progressive Socialist Party Leader MP Walid Jumblat said on Sunday that "a general assembly shall be held towards the end of the current month, where clear political words will be uttered regarding the past, the present and the future positions of the Party; in addition to organizational issues."

During a swearing in ceremony of new PSP members in Shwaifat, Jumblat said that "the party achieved transition from the former organizational structure to a new one."

The Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi on Sunday pointed out that the Patriarch should hold "no color except the Lebanese colors", stressing that he is with "all the parties and movements and all of the Lebanese people."

During a dinner held by the Aito Organization in Ottawa, Rahi said that former Patriarch Sfeir had always played the role of Bkirki well, "although some tried to show him as following a certain party," stressing that the Patriarch holds no colors except the Lebanese ones.

Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji travelled to Washington on Sunday for talks with U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey.

On Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador Maura Connelly reiterated that the Obama administration expects from Lebanon and the Lebanese Armed Forces to fulfill their commitment to implement U.N. Security Council resolution 1701.

Former Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir said Sunday that he doesn’t reject Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s remarks on Hizbullah’s arms and the situation in Syria, stressing that he is “not against” the head of the Maronite church.

In remarks to Voice of Lebanon radio station (93.3), Sfeir said: “We are with what he says and we are not against him.”

Speaker Nabih Berri has denied that he informed Premier Najib Miqati about the rejection of Hizbullah and Amal to fund the international tribunal, saying the cabinet would have a say on the issue when the draft state budget is discussed.

Berri’s visitors quoted him as saying that as long as the funding is mentioned in the 2012 budget, the cabinet would discuss the issue and the parliamentary majority would vote on it.

Speaker Nabih Berri will likely propose a solution to the wage dispute between business leaders and the General Labor Confederation if both parties weren’t able to reach an agreement by Tuesday, his visitors said.

Premier Najib Miqati held talks with Berri on Saturday in what was seen as a last-ditch effort and a race against time to solve the wage crisis ahead of Wednesday’s strike planned by the GLC.