"The Palestinian public does not understand what is happening in the negotiations" over last October's Wye Memorandum, according to Dr Ghassan Khatiba, a leading Palestinian commentator.
"They wait to see if what is signed is implemented because none of the Palestinian agreements with Israel have been properly implemented," he said.
Dr Khatib said: "The public does not see why negotiations should go on and on for weeks over the handover of a few percentages of West Bank land, which should have been transferred to Palestinian control long ago, and over the release of prisoners due for release after the signing of Oslo I in September 1993."
At this stage in the Oslo process, the Palestinians expected to control 87 per cent of the West Bank and to have all political prisoners freed. Once the new deal is carried out, they will exercise full or partial control over 40 per cent and 1,500 political prisoners will remain in jail.
The new document, clumsily entitled "Memorandum on Implementation Timeline of Outstanding Commitments of Agreements Signed, and the Resumption of Permanent Status Negotiations", wraps up the "interim phase" - although more than 30 items, according to Palestinian count, remain unimplemented by Israel.
In Dr Khatib's view, "Amended Wye is not Wye. It is a an entirely new document . . . We are very disturbed because the Palestine Authority allows the Israelis to change signed agreements."
Dr Khatib fears the Authority has capitulated to the threat to implement Wye unilaterally, a threat issued early this week by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Barak.
Dr Mehdi Abdel Hadi, who heads the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs in Jerusalem, said the Palestinians were under strong pressure from the US, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to conclude a deal quickly, even at the cost of capitulating to "dictation" by Mr Barak.
The US is eager to see Wye out of the way so that the Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, can relaunch the "final status" negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel and attempt to re-engage Syria and Israel at the point their negotiations broke off in March, 1996.
So far Mr Barak has refused to recommit to a proposal put forward by his mentor, the late prime minister, Yitzak Rabin, to evacuate the Golan to the line of June 4th, 1967. This proposal met Syria's demand for full Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territory. Ms Albright told Israel on August 13th that Mr Barak "cannot afford to ignore Rabin's proposal to Syria," indicating she agreed with Syria on this issue.
