The animals have been suspected as the source of Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers)
amour purple coeur.
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found "identical" Mers viruses in camels and their owner
fly red rain Single Club.
The precise source of the infection has been unclear.
The man, who was treated at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah, kept nine camels that had been sick shortly before he was infected.
An analysis of viral samples taken from both the camels and the patient showed that "the full genome sequence from the two isolates was identical", the report said.
It added: "These data suggest that this fatal case of human Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection was transmitted through close contact with an infected camel."
Jonathan Ball, a professor of virology at Nottingham University, told the BBC: "All the evidence points to camels being the culprit. This is probably the first time the virus sequence is identical and suggests this is a case of transmission.