Fighters from Kurdish popular defense units YPJ (women) and YPG (men) gather during a short break before heading out to fight for new positions in Kobani, Syria.

:: The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia has clashed with ISIS militants after the latter attacked a gas plant area in Al-Shaddadi city in northeastern Syria, the British-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Friday.

The Observatory said there was “information” about casualties in the “ranks of both parties” in the city located in the southern countrywide of Al-Hasakah governorate.

The monitoring group also reported that a 13-year-old boy was killed by fire of US Coalition-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) “during their raid on Haddadiyah village in the countryside of Shaddadi city yesterday afternoon.”

Meanwhile, the Observatory also said a week of infighting killed nearly 169 people in the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta region outside Syria’s capital Damascus before calm returned on Friday.

The clashes erupted on April 28 between the powerful Army of Islam faction and the former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front, along with ally Faylaq al-Rahman.

The Observatory said the area was calm Friday but also reported “a continued state of alert on both sides in the areas under their control.”

The monitor said 156 fighters had been killed in the clashes, 67 from the Army of Islam and the rest from Fateh al-Sham and allied forces.

The fighting also killed 13 civilians, including two children, and wounded dozens, the monitor said.

In a related story, Russian President Vladimir Putin has discussed the issues of Syrian settlement, the outcome of talks with the German chancellor and the Turkish president, as well as preparations for Victory Day, the Kremlin press service said on Friday.

During the meeting the president informed its participants about the talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that took place this week, the press service said.

Also there was a detailed exchange of views on the issue of Syrian settlement in the light of the agreement on the establishment of de-escalation zones, reached in Astana Thursday, the Kremlin added.