An Israeli government report set to be submitted to the UN this week says that hostages, including children, freed last year from Gaza endured physical and sexual abuse during their captivity, AFP reports.

The report from the Israeli health ministry, which it said was based on testimonies from released captives, details incidents of individuals being burned, beaten and deliberately starved by their Hamas captors.

The findings will be presented this week to Alice Jill Edwards, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, the ministry said in a statement.

The report said that some of the hostages, including children, had been “sexually assaulted or forced to undress, including at gunpoint”.

Women hostages described being “tied to beds while their captors stared at them,” while men also reported severe abuse, the report said.