Authorities in the Philippines say the official death toll from typhoon Haiyan has risen to 2,360.

The spokesman for the country’s civil defense agency confirmed the figure early Friday, hours after the United Nations issued conflicting reports. In a briefing Thursday, an UN spokesman said the latest death toll was 4,460, almost double the last official number given.

Death toll of typhoon "Haiyan" in Philippines rises to 2,357

People afflicted by Typhoon Haiyan start to leave their hometown in Tacloban, the Philippines, Nov. 14, 2013.

The UN also said that more than 920,000 people have been displaced. But many areas still have not received aid. According to the Red Cross, the preliminary number of missing as of Thursday remained at 22,000. That could include people who have since been located. (Source: CNTV.cn)

Looting in Philippines' typhoon-hit city under control

Philippine security forces are in full control of the situation in Tacloban City where rampant looting occurred after Typhoon Haiyan devastated central part of the country last Friday, Defense Chief Voltaire Gazmin said Wednesday.

At least 1,200 soldiers and 800 policemen have been deployed to Tacloban to ensure peace and order, said Gazmin, who is also chairman of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Looting was reported in some parts of Tacloban as relief goods could not reach remote areas due to damaged roads caused by typhoon.

There has been a "dramatic decrease" in the number of looting incidents in Tacloban now, said police senior superintendent R' wind Pagkalinawan.

"Ever since our augmentation force from Manila and the different regions arrived in Tacloban, there was dramatic decrease in looting inside the city," he said.

As the strongest typhoon ever hit the Philippines, Haiyan has claimed 2,344 lives as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, with 79 others missing.

Philippines thanks foreign donors for typhoon victims

The Philippines expressed gratitude for foreign countries which had offered donations for victims of typhoon "Haiyan" or locally known as Yolanda, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said here Wednesday.

The country has received assistance from 36 countries and international organizations with a total value of 89.5 million U.S. dollars (3.83 billion pesos), the DFA said in a statement issued Wednesday.

"We would like to convey the sincerest gratitude to our international partners and kababayans abroad for their generous and swift response in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda," said DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez.

This figure accounts only for cash donation pledges and in-kind donations to which monetary valuation had been assigned by the donors.

Most of the international assistance, either in monetary form or in-kind donations, does not go through the Philippine government. The DFA, as the first point of contact for the international community, is notified of pledges of international assistance, and then will pass on the information to the country's disaster relief council and other agencies, the DFA said.

President Benigno Aquino III has also thanked, in a statement released Wednesday, everyone including Filipinos both in the country and abroad who had donated their time, efforts, technical and financial services and other form of assistance following the typhoon.

"Haiyan", as the strongest typhoon ever hit the Philippines, has claimed 2,344 lives as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, with 79 others remain missing.

Source: Xinhuanet