Saudi Arabia has defended its efforts to aid Syrians fleeing the conflict in their country, following criticism that Gulf countries were not taking in any refugees since the crisis broke out four years ago.

The kingdom has been one of the largest providers of aid to Syria's people, and has taken in millions of citizens from the war-torn country, said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs explaining the aid efforts taken by the country.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) cited an official source in the foreign ministry as saying that the kingdom found it "important to clarify these efforts with facts and numbers in response to media reports, which included false and misleading accusations about the kingdom".

The source pointed out that Gulf states had taken in hundreds of thousands of Syrians since the civil war there began in 2011 - just not as refugees.

Saudi Arabia, he stated, was keen to not deal with them as refugees, or to put them in refugee camps, but to preserve their dignity and safety, and gave them complete freedom of movement."

"(The kingdom) gave whoever chose to stay in the kingdom, which are in the hundreds of thousands, proper residency  with all the rights that are included like free health care and engaging in the workforce and education," the source added.

Saudi Arabia has also provided some $700 million in humanitarian aid to Syrians and had set up clinics in various refugee camps, the statement said.

The Saudi response comes after criticism from the Western media that none of the six states that form the Gulf Cooperation Council - Saudi Arabia, Oman, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar - has signed the UN convention on refugees, which has governed international law on asylum since World War Two.

The source said Saudi Arabia had received nearly 2.5 million Syrians since the conflict erupted.

The official source said more than 100,000 Syrian students were receiving free education in the kingdom. The country had provided humanitarian aid countries hosting Syrian refugees and through international relief organisations.

The humanitarian aid provided to Syrians by the Kingdom consisted of food and medical, academic, and residential supplies, and included the establishment of Saudi specialised clinics in refugee camps, most importantly the Zaatari Camp in Jordan, said the statement.

The Kingdom was able to provide medical care in the form of immunizations, preventive treatments and medical procedures. In addition, Saudi Arabia sponsored a large number of Syrian families living in Lebanon and Syria (specifically paying for their rent and living costs), it added.-TradeArabia News Service