United Nations, May 4 (RHC)-- French soldiers in the Central African Republic have been accused of sexually abusing refugee children and feeding them only in exchange for sex.

In order to receive food, the young refugee children had been forced to let the French troops, who were working as UN peacekeepers in the CAR, rape and sodomize them in the capital city Bangui in 2014, The Guardian reported.

The report, entitled Sexual Abuse on Children by International Armed Forces, was leaked by advocacy group Aids Free World. A nine-year-old male refugee describes in the report how the French troops at the IDP camp would force him and his friends to carry out sexual acts when they wanted food.

"The regular sex abuse by peacekeeping personnel uncovered here and the United Nations and the appalling disregard for victims are stomach-turning, but the awful truth is that this isn't uncommon," said Paula Donovan, the co-director of the advocacy group.

Donovan added: "The UN's instinctive response to sexual violence in its ranks -- ignore, deny, cover up, dissemble -- must be subjected to a truly independent commission of inquiry with total access, top to bottom, and full subpoena power."