It was the second suicide bomb attack on a church in the flashpoint city in two weeks, after a February 26 attack claimed by Islamic extremist sect Boko Haram killed three people and injured 50 as they attended a Sunday service.
Jos, a faultline in Nigeria`s Muslim-Christian divide between north and south, was tense in the aftermath of the bombing amid fears of a reprise of deadly riots which followed last month`s attack.
"There are rumours of reprisals from Christian youths, but we hope the security agents are on top of the situation as they have cordoned off the area," said Alhassan Danjuma Aliyu, local chief of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
Rioting that followed the last bombing killed a further three people, believed to be Muslims.
The bomber on Sunday aimed his speeding car at St Finbar`s Catholic church in the city before setting off a large explosion, killing himself and at least three churchgoers, emergency agency spokesman Yushau Shuaib told AFP.
"Three confirmed dead," said Shuaib, adding that several others were in a critical condition and had been removed to hospital.
"We removed only three corpses and a number of injured victims had been evacuated," he said.
The worst recent attack on a Catholic church came on December 25 last, when 44 people were killed during a mass to celebrate Christmas in a town outside the capital Abuja.
Jos lies in the so-called middle belt region dividing the mainly Muslim north and predominantly Christian south, and hundreds of people have been killed in clashes between Muslim and Christian ethnic groups in recent years.
Violence blamed on Boko Haram, whose goals remain largely unclear, has since 2009 claimed more than 1,000 lives, including more than 300 this year, according to figures tallied by AFP and rights groups. (*)
Editor: Kunto Wibisono
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