Thousands of pilgrims started arriving in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia on Friday, among some one million Muslims expected to attend the 2022 hajj pilgrimage season after two years of major disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Wrapped in white robes, with some carrying umbrellas against the burning desert sun, hundreds performed the first ritual of the haj, which involves walking in a circle around the Kaaba, the sacred building at the centre of Mecca’s Grand Mosque. “Praise be God… It’s impossible to describe my feelings right now,” said Ahmed Sayed Mahmoud, an Egyptian pilg…